


In My Heart

by ErzaDLaw



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Depression, Drama & Romance, F/M, Sex
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-24
Updated: 2019-08-15
Packaged: 2019-09-20 09:50:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 11
Words: 44,428
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17020401
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ErzaDLaw/pseuds/ErzaDLaw
Summary: After Tartaros, Lucy goes to seek help from the only friend who could understand her loss.





	1. Chapter 1

This is a fanfiction that takes place after the Tartaros Arc, with my own changes obviously. :)

I do not own Fairy Tail. Hiro Mashima owns Fairy Tail.

* * *

Lucy found herself in front of Sabertooth's guild with her few belongings that she decided to take with her. Pain, anger, loss, and heartbreak filled her soul as she pushed the doors open to the guild.

Every footstep that Lucy took felt a little heavier each time. She was so consumed by the thoughts plaguing her that she didn't even hear the whispers, " _Isn't that Lucy from Fairy Tail?"_

Finally the voice that she had been searching for called out to her, "Lucy-san, what's wrong?"

Lucy realized that tears were running down her face and all she could whisper out was, "Y-Yukino."

The silver haired Celestial Mage ran to hug her friend and weeks of anguish finally spilled out as Lucy sobbed in Yukino's arms.

* * *

**Hours Later…**

"She's sleeping in my apartment now," Yukino told Sting.

Sting, Rogue, Minerva, Rufus, Orga, Frosch, and Lector all waited back at the guild for Yukino when she said that she was going to take the Fairy Tail Mage back to her place.

Sting asked, "Yukino, what the hell is going on? Why did Blondie come here looking for you and where is Natsu-san?"

Yukino looked down at the ground and her arms began to shake in anger. Rarely did Yukino find herself in a situation where she was actually pissed off but today was one of those rare days. She looked at her Guild Master and asked, "Did you know that Fairy Tail disbanded?"

"What?" everyone asked in shock. Just a few weeks ago Rouge and Sting had helped the Fairie's with the Tartaros fiasco and then brought Minerva back home.

"Lucy-san told me that a week after Tartaros, Master Makarov disbanded Fairy Tail. However, there is a lot more that is bothering Lucy-san," Yukino stated as she tried to remain calm before she continued, "When Mard Geer used Alegria to trap Fairy Tail—Lucy-san escaped the trap."

"Yeah, that's how they were able to get that huge cube-thing down. Blondie did something," Sting replied because he remembered he heard Natsu say something about it.

"She did more than something. She sacrificed one of her keys to save everyone and not just any key—one of the keys that belonged to her mother, Aquarius," Yukino said as a few tears fell down her face.

"What do you mean she sacrificed Aquarius?" Minerva asked feeling a guilty that she had once put Lucy through so much pain.

"The demons were trying to kill Lucy-san since she was the only one left and she had summoned out Loke and Virgo; however, it wasn't enough…Lucy-san used what magic she had left and summoned another spirit out—Aquarius," Yukino said as she wiped the tears from her own face, "For Lucy to summon out three Golden Gate Keys is a feat in itself for any Celestial Mage, but Aquarius couldn't hold off the demons forever. Aquarius told Lucy in order to save everyone she would have to to sacrifice her key so that she could summon the Spirit King."

"So I take it, Lucy was able to do that and then it saved everyone?" Sting asked as he sat bent down over on his throne as he listened to Yukino's tale.

Yukino nodded then said, "Then after everything was over, Lucy went home and found a note from Natsu saying that he and Happy were leaving for a year. He didn't even say goodbye and he didn't know exactly how Lucy had saved everyone. Then the next day Fairy Tail disbanded, her own team said nothing to her. The only ones that said goodbye were Wendy and Carla who are now members of Lamia Scale."

"Natsu just left without saying goodbye?" Rogue asked, his voice clearly laced with agitation.

"He just fucking left her? What in the actual fuck!? He's the one always raving about nakama and shit and then he just fucking leaves?" Sting yelled.

"Did he say in his letter why?" Orga asked Yukino, also quite annoyed with the Fire Dragon Slayer.

"Just that he was going to go train," Yukino said.

"So she saved everyone, pretty much everyone in Fiore, because she sacrificed one of her oldest and dearest friends and no one from Fairy Tail bothered to find out how she saved all of them?" Minerva asked as she remembered that day vividly.

Yukino nodded and then looked at Sting and said, "Sting, this will take a long time for Lucy-san to heal. Doing that to Aquarius…that would be like you killing Lector to save your friends then those friends don't even acknowledge the sacrifice that you made. Plus, Lucy and I became close friends after the Games…I know that she had a pretty lonely childhood like all of us. Her spirits  _are_  her family and then her guild family just left her alone after a tragic loss."

Everyone remained quiet. The Mages were all confused and slightly angry that Fairy Tail would just disband.

Rogue then broke the silence and asked, "Yukino, how long does Lucy plan on staying with you?"

"I told her that she could stay as long as she needed," Yukino responded, "But that's another reason why I came back tonight because I think we should let Lucy join Sabertooth—if she wants to."

However Minerva spoke up and asked, "Would she want to? After what I did to her?"

"If my memory serves me correctly," Rufus finally spoke up, "Lucy is a lot like our Yukino. She forgives people even if they don't feel worthy of that forgiveness or deserve it."

"I say we ask her. It'd be pretty badass to have two Celestial Mages since we have two Dragon Slayers," Orga said.

"Frosch thinks so too," the little Exceed agreed.

"Well of course she can join us, that was never a question," Sting said suddenly, "My problem is Natsu-san. I want to find him and kick his ass."

Rogue just sighed and said, "I guess you better go train for a year too."

Sting snorted at the comment then looked at Yukino and asked, "Is there anything we can do to help you and Blondie?"

"I'm sure we will be fine for now. When she's ready, I'll ask her if she will join us. Thank you everyone for listening," Yukino said.

"Well we had to learn our lesson the hard way. It doesn't sit right with me that Lucy lost so much then was left alone," Rogue said as he looked at Frosch and thought about how painful it would be if he lost the little Exceed.

"That's what pisses me off about the whole goddamn thing! Natsu-san can go fuck right off! We will show him! I'll kick his ass and we will make Blondie super tough and then she'll kick Natsu-san's ass too!" Sting started to rant.

The mages watched as their Master went on a rampage of cursing. The guild really was so much better now and it warmed Yukino's heart to see how much Sting cared for them and even for Lucy.

"Thanks everyone; I'll see you guys tomorrow. I better get back to check on Lucy-san," Yukino said as she told everyone goodnight.

Once Yukino had left, Sting said, "Rufus, could you look into what the other Fairies are up to? Like Gajeel-san and Erza-san. I just don't know where they would all go and not say anything to Blondie."

"Of course Sting," Rufus replied.

The others said their goodnights and only Rogue, Sting, Frosch, and Lector remained when Sting looked at Rogue and said, "I guess we will have the Twin Dragon Slayers and the Twin Celestial Mages. One thing is for sure, when Natsu-san comes back he'll be pretty surprised to see that Blondie is a Sabertooth Mage."


	2. Chapter 2

Loke had his arm around Lucy as they sat on Yukino's couch. It had been a few days since Lucy had shown up to find the other Celestial Mage. Yukino had been a tremendous friend and she made sure that Lucy was eating and coping with her grief in a healthy way.

Lucy somewhat felt like a burden, but Yukino just kept saying that she knew for a fact that if the roles were reversed then there would be no doubt that Lucy would have been there for Yukino. Lucy couldn't really bring herself to argue after that, because she knew her friend was right.

Finally Loke broke her depressing thoughts and said, "You know what Aquarius would tell you right now."

"Probably stop being a cry baby," Lucy said with a smile.

Loke just chuckled, but then Lucy added, "It's not just Aquarius I lost though. It was everyone. Did I really mean so little to them that they couldn't even say goodbye? Did they not even notice my pain after losing Aquarius? I sacrificed her for them…"

The Zodiac Leader took a deep breath at the question and thought carefully about his words. The truth is, he was a bit pissed off too. He couldn't understand why any of them would just leave Lucy behind, even Gray...he had thought Gray would have known better.

Finally Loke said, "I don't think it's because they thought you were weak or anything. They do care. Maybe it was because everyone was trying to work through their own pain that they forgot to care about anyone but themselves. Don't blame yourself and Aquarius doesn't blame you either."

Lucy wasn't entirely convinced, but she knew that Loke was hurt too and also looking out for her. She leaned over onto his shoulder and said, "Thanks for being there for me Loke."

"What is family for?" Loke said with a smile before he asked, "So have you given any thought on what you want to do now?"

Lucy shook her head no. She had lost her home, her family, and her guild. She honestly hadn't given a thought about the future yet. Everything, even simple things, seemed overwhelming at this point.

Then the door to Yukino's apartment opened as Yukino had bags of groceries with her. Loke immediately jumped up to grab the bags and said, "Let me get those for you, My Fair Lady Yukino. A beautiful woman like yourself shouldn't stoop to carrying bags."

"U-u-uumm, thank you Loke," Yukino replied with a blush as the Lion Spirit took the grocery bags from her and carried them to her kitchen.

Yukino's apartment reminded Lucy of what she thought heaven might look like. The walls were a bluish gray with beautiful pieces of artwork up. She had a blue couch and love seat with a large white fuzzy rug in front that Lucy loved putting her feet on. Everything was beautifully coordinated with Yukino's favorite colors.

"How are you feeling today Lucy-san?" Yukino asked with a smile as she took a seat next to the blonde.

Lucy gave a faint smile and replied, "I'm doing a lot better. Thank you for everything Yukino, but please let me pay you back for the food and stuff that you have bought."

Yukino shook her head no and said, "I have been more than happy to help. You don't owe me anything."

Loke walked back in and took a seat on the loveseat and he added, "Thank you for looking out for my Princess, My Fair Lady Yukino."

Every time Loke flattered Yukino, the poor girl blushed wildly and Lucy just shook her head and her flirty Lion Spirit. Her spirits all really liked Yukino already and when each of them visited Lucy to check on her, they thought how nice it was that there were two Celestial Mages together who both cared so much for their spirits. It was like they were a big family.

Finally Yukino asked, "Lucy-san, have you given any thought on where you are going to work or what you want to do. I'm not trying to rush you. Take as much time as you need."

Lucy looked down at the pink guild mark on her right hand and shook her head no. Yukino and Loke both looked at each other because they understood how much pain Lucy was trying to cope with.

The silver haired Mage then grabbed Lucy's right hand and looked into her friend's big brown eyes and asked, "Would you like to join Sabertooth?"

Lucy's eyes widened in shock because the thought had never occurred to her. She looked over at Loke who just smiled and said, "That sounds like fun."

Yukino knew that Lucy's heart still belonged to Fairy Tail so she added, "It doesn't have to be permanent because your Fairy Tail mark is still on you. Who knows maybe Fairy Tail will exist again someday and you could go back if that is what you wanted, but for now you still need a place to work and live."

"Would Sabertooth want someone like me? I lost to Minerva," Lucy said quietly.

"Of course! Sting already said you could join and everyone would gladly welcome you—even Minerva. They are already calling us the Twin Celestial Mages in hopes that you will join," Yukino said with a smile.

Lucy looked at Loke again who said, "It's whatever you want to do Lucy, but I think it would be a good idea. You have friends here who care; let them help."

Lucy knew that Yukino was right about Fairy Tail. A part of her heart was left in Magnolia, but she had to think about what would be best for her and her spirits, so she looked at Yukino and said, "Ok, that sounds nice."

After they talked for a little bit, Yukino said Lucy could live here as long as she wanted or until she found her own place. Yukino was very excited because it would be like having a sister again, plus having someone who understood her magic. She thought how fun it would be to find more keys together and perhaps future keys could somehow be joint contracted. She knew she would have to bring that up to Lucy so that they could look into that together, because it was like they were a big family now. It would be so much fun to collect all the keys with Lucy so that they could watch over the spirits together and protect them.

Lucy excused herself to her room when Yukino went to go make them some lunch and Loke jumped at the chance to cook with Yukino. Lucy looked down at her keys and could still feel the difference of not having Aquarius with the others. Right now she kept the remaining part of Aquarius's key in the special box that held the letters to her Mama.

She felt a sudden pang in her chest from the loss and knew she needed to distract herself before she started crying again. She summoned Cancer and then said, "Do you remember a few weeks ago when you suggested I grow my hair out?"

Cancer nodded and said, "Of course, I think you would look beautiful, Ebi."

"Let's do it. I want a new look. I don't want to be Lucy of Fairy Tail anymore. I want to be Lucy of Sabertooth," Lucy said as she bit back her tears.

Cancer understood why Lucy wanted to change and knew how hard this must be for her. He knew she still loved Fairy Tail, but still Cancer was upset that they hurt her. Then Cancer obliged and began to work his magic.

When the Crab Spirit finished, he topped off the look with tying a black ribbon in Lucy's hair before he said, "Beautiful."

Lucy looked in the mirror and marveled at Cancer's work. Cancer indeed grew her hair out. It was so long that it went down to her butt; even being tied up into a ponytail on her head. However, Cancer also did a reverse ombré on her hair. The ends of her hair were dyed black and it accented her natural blonde hair that he didn't change.

"Cancer, this looks amazing!" Lucy said, "I already look badass."

Cancer smiled at Lucy's praise then said, "Virgo probably already has a lot of new outfits picked out for your new look too."

Lucy thanked Cancer again and gave him a big hug before he went back. She listened to his advice and called out Virgo, who already had a mountain of clothes in her arms as she asked, "Punishment, Hime-sama?"

Lucy just shook her head with a smile and then let Virgo wow her with the new styles. Once they were done, Lucy looked at herself in the full length mirror and was blown away by Cancer's and Virgo's tastes combined.

Her top was a black sleeveless halter top that cuffed her neck with a thin white stitching and a very short pleated black miniskirt to match it. To finish it, Lucy had a brown pair of thigh high boots that matched the belt for her keys that hung around her curvy hips and under the boots peaked out a black pair of thigh high stockings.

Lucy admired herself on how cute she still looked. She was still girlie Lucy Heartfilia. She didn't change anything super drastic, but it was enough to make her feel like it was ok to start new. She knew Aquarius would want that; however, she looked in the mirror and started to look sad when the pink Fairy Tail guild insignia on her right hand glared at her.

Virgo watched were Lucy's sad eyes focused, so the Maid Spirit then held out an arm stocking and said, "This will cover it."

Lucy just nodded and let Virgo help her slip it on over her arm. The fabric stretched up and fit perfectly around Lucy's bicep where it looked like a tiny brown strap, which matched her boots and belt, held it in place. She ran her left hand down the smooth fabric that covered her arm and it tightened around her wrist. Then she extended her fingers on her right hand so Virgo could slip a loop on Lucy's middle finger so that the extended part of the arm sleeve fabric stretched over her hand, covering her old guild mark from sight.

"Do you think my guild mark will go away when I get my new one?" Lucy asked Virgo.

"Maybe, maybe not," Virgo replied, "A part of you will always have a place for Fairy Tail in your heart, but now you are just making room for new things."

"Am I doing the wrong thing? By joining Sabertooth..." Lucy asked as she looked down at her covered hand.

"We don't think so," Virgo said with a smile, as she referenced Lucy's spirits, "Everyone else in Fairy Tail moved on, so there is no reason why you should feel guilty. Besides Yukino really likes that you are here and she is your friend. It's no different than Wendy and Carla going to be with Chelia. Besides Aquarius wants to see you happy too."

Lucy knew that Virgo was right, so she grabbed the Maid Spirit in a fierce hug as she tried to fight back her tears. Then Lucy thanked Virgo again, who asked for punishment one more time, before she returned to the Spirit World. Lucy looked at herself in the mirror one more time and gave herself a wink to boost her confidence before she left her room to eat lunch with Yukino.

* * *

"Sting, this is a stupid idea," Rogue said dryly as he followed his friend towards Yukino's apartment.

"Master Sting has the best ideas," Lector tried to argue.

"Rogue we haven't seen Yukino or Blondie since the night she arrived. What if they need help?" Sting asked as he ignored his friend's advice.

"Lucy is grieving and you have a tendency to run your mouth and say stupid things. I'm looking out for both of you," Rogue stated flatly.

"Frosch thinks so too," Frosch said in agreement with Rogue.

"Psssshhh...whatever. I'm a ladies man; I always say the right thing," Sting said with confidence.

"Sting-kun gets  _all_  the ladies. Oh sorry, Master Sting!" Lector quickly corrected himself.

"Lector, don't call me Master," Sting sighed, but still had a grin on his face.

"So your intention is to sleep with Lucy?" Rogue asked in annoyance. The idea of Sting and Lucy together really bothered him. He didn't know why, since he didn't know Lucy that well. Plus he didn't have a right to be bothered when the future version of him killed the future version of her. The thought that his future self had killed someone who was filled with so much good made him feel sick and often plagued his nightmares.

Rogue's dark thoughts were broken when Sting yelled, "I'm not trying to have sex with Blondie. Although I wouldn't object if she offered. She's a hottie."

"I don't think you're her type," Rogue stated.

"Whatever! I'm everyone's type. It's why I show off my abs so the ladies can get a sample of what I have to offer. Besides if I'm not her type, then who do you think is her type?" Sting asked as he put his hands behind his head.

Rogue thought about that for a moment then said, "Probably someone like Rufus."

"What?! Why?" Sting whined.

"Because he has manners and is elegant," Rogue replied.

"So you think Blondie's type is a gay man? Well that won't work out well for her when she finds out that he isn't interested," Sting said as they continued their trek to Yukino's apartment.

"I didn't mean Rufus specifically. I just meant someone  _like_  him. Someone with class. However, if Lucy does join us I could see Lucy and Rufus becoming close friends," Rogue stated as his heart felt a little sad as he thought about Lucy's type.

"I think you're wrong. Not about Lucy and Rufus becoming friends because I can see that too. Yukino always talks about how smart Blondie is and Rufus always seems to have his nose stuck in a book. However, I think she has a different type," Sting said with a smirk.

"Besides yourself, then who do you think her type is?" Rogue asked even though he knew the answer was probably going to be something stupid.

"Well besides me, obviously, then I think Bacchus from Quatro Cerberus would be her type," Sting said with confidence.

"What?" Rogue asked as he thought about how he was right—it was a stupid answer.

"Well she was partners with Natsu-san, so she's used to someone crazy, but I think she'd be wild in the bedroom. Someone like Rufus would be too gentle with her, you know if Rufus liked girls. I think she likes it rough, wild, and hot," Sting said as he slapped Rogue's back.

"You're a moron," Rogue stated as they finally reached Yukino's apartment and was thankful for the conversation with Sting to be over.

* * *

"Lucy-san! You look so sexy!" Yukino exclaimed with a smile as she admired Lucy's new look.

Lucy laughed and did a twirl for Yukino as she replied, "Thanks! Cancer and Virgo really outdid themselves this time."

Yukino smiled widely at seeing Lucy have a genuine smile on her face, but then Loke jumped towards Lucy and yelled, "My Princess! Jump into my arms so that we can be together forever!"

Lucy stepped to the side, so Loke's attempt at grabbing her failed. They all just laughed and Lucy felt her heart finally start to lighten a little.

Then Loke adjusted his glasses and said, "It looks like you ladies will be fine without me for a while, but if you need me then just let me know."

Lucy thanked Loke for everything then before he left he winked at them and said, "Bye cuties."

Yukino was just about to ask Lucy if she was ready to eat when they heard a knock on the door. Lucy didn't know why, but she suddenly felt a little scared.

When Yukino answered the door, she was surprised to see Sting, Rogue, Frosch, and Lector. "What are you guys doing here?" Yukino asked in a shocked tone.

"We wanted to come check on you guys," Sting said with a smile.

"We were just about to eat lunch. Would you like to join us?" Yukino asked kindly, "There's more than enough."

"I'm starving!" Sting replied as Yukino welcomed them in.

"Please forgive our intrusion," Rogue said with a faint smile because he knew that Yukino understood Sting's silliness and overall lack of manners.

When Rogue walked by Yukino, he noticed that Sting had stopped walking and was just staring at something with his mouth agape. Rogue looked up and saw Lucy standing in front of them. She looked nervous as she played with her keys, but Rogue understood why Sting had been mesmerized—Lucy looked breathtaking.

"U-um hello," Lucy said quietly.

Rogue saw that Sting's mouth was still hanging open so he hit his friend's stomach and replied, "Hello Lucy, how are you feeling?"

He watched as she smiled faintly at him and answered, "Much better, thanks to Yukino."

"I'm glad to hear that," Rogue said as he returned her smile.

Rogue broke eye contact finally when he heard Frosch yell, "Pretty Lucy!" Then the little Exceed darted towards Lucy and hugged her leg.

Lucy just laughed and bent down to greet Frosch then Lector went over and said bashfully but loud nonetheless, "Lucy-san, you are so pretty! Your hair is the best!"

Rogue watched Lucy smile at Lector and she extended her right arm that was covered in an arm sleeve that covered her old guild insignia and replied, "Hello Lector, it's nice to see you again and thank you for the compliment."

Rogue could smell the drool coming off of Sting, probably from a combination of the thought of food and Lucy. He watched as Lucy interacted and spoke with their Exceed friends and even though she did look better than the other day, he could still see the sadness in her eyes.

Yukino then said, "You guys can have a seat at the table and I'll bring the food out."

"Let me help you," Lucy tried to say.

However Rogue pushed Sting towards Yukino and said, "Sting can help you, Yukino, since he did just invite himself over."

"I'll help too!" Lector yelled as he followed Yukino and a still stunned Sting.

Lucy just smiled as Rogue picked Frosch up and sat the Exceed in one of the special chairs that Yukino had gotten for Frosch and Lector. The Exceeds' chairs were placed on both ends of the table.

Frosch then turned to Lucy and said, "Pretty Lucy, sit by Frosch!"

"Sure Frosch," Lucy said with a smile and took a seat next to the adorable Exceed.

Rogue was now in a predicament he had not foreseen. He always sat by Frosch during meals, but if he sat by Frosch this time then that meant he would be sitting across from Lucy, thus leaving an open seat next to her.

However, he had to make a fast decision when he heard Yukino, Lector, and Sting come back in the room. He looked over at Sting who was eyeing the open chair next to Lucy and without hesitating, Rogue took the open seat next to her. He had no idea what had gotten into him, but he repulsed the idea of Sting getting close to Lucy. Also, Rogue felt a little victorious when Lucy turned to him with a smile and he saw Sting in his peripherals scowling at him.

As Lector took the seat at the other end of the table, placing himself between Rogue and Sting, Yukino took the seat opposite of Lucy and told everyone to help themselves.

After Sting filled his mouth full of food, he asked the girls, "So have you guys done anything fun?"

Rogue and Yukino both shot Sting a look and this was exactly the reason why Rogue didn't want to come in the first place. Then Sting hit his head and realized his own mistake.

However Lucy spoke up and said, "W-we did watch a really nice movie last night."

Rogue let out a relieved sigh when Yukino said, "We watched  _The Princess Bride_ , because we had never seen it before and Loke insisted that we were missing out on a great love story."

"I love that movie!" Sting yelled as he shoved more food into his mouth.

Lucy turned to Rogue and asked, "Have you seen it before?"

Then before Rogue could respond, Sting barked out a laugh and said, "I can't get his Emo-ass to hardly watch anything with me. I think he's seen two movies his whole life."

"That's because I don't like watching movies with people who talk the whole way through and drop their popcorn on the floor," Rogue said as he shot Sting an annoyed look before he turned to Lucy and said in a kind tone, "But no Lucy I haven't seen that movie. Maybe we could all watch it together sometime."

Rogue realized what he said after he said it when he saw a faint blush coat Lucy's cheeks and she replied, "That sounds like fun."

Rogue realized he had gotten lucky because right when he had said that to Lucy, Sting had asked Yukino if she had anymore chicken and he didn't notice what Rogue had said.

The six talked and enjoyed each other's company until Sting had finished all of the food. Yukino started to clear the plates and just as Lucy tried to help again Lector yelled, "No Lucy-san! Sting-kun and I will help!"

Sting sighed but helped without much of an argument.

Then Rogue and Lucy heard Frosch say, "Rogue, Frosch is sleepy."

Rogue got up to grab Frosch who was trying to rub the sleep out of his eyes when Lucy offered, "He can take a nap on my bed. That way Sting doesn't wake him."

He laughed at the comment as he followed Lucy to her room with a now fully asleep Frosch in his hands. "Sorry about Sting, it's obvious that he was raised by a dragon with his manners," Rogue said as he gently laid a sleeping Frosch down on Lucy's bed.

Lucy tried to bite back a laugh so that she wouldn't wake Frosch. It made Rogue happy as he watched Lucy gently cover Frosch with her blanket.

When they left, Lucy carefully closed the door just in time because Sting came bursting back into the room with a smiling Yukino and Lector behind him. Yukino directed them over to the living room area as she carried a plate of cookies over and sat them down on her coffee table. Rogue found himself somewhat surprised as he once again ended up by Lucy on the love-seat.

The young Master of Sabertooth then looked at Lucy and said, "So Yukino tells me that you accepted her offer to join us."

Rogue felt his heart lurch at the sudden change in Lucy's demeanor. He felt her body stiffen as their arms barely touched on the love-seat. Her body began to tremble slightly and Rogue had the urge to wrap her in his arms.

"Y-yes, if you'll have me," Lucy said nervously.

"Hells yeah we want you! We are going to be so awesome with two Dragon Slayers and two Celestial Mages. We need to come up with a good name for our new team," Sting said with a huge grin on his face.

"As Master of the guild you can't really be on a team," Rogue reminded him, "You have responsibilities and paperwork to do."

"Nahhh, Rufus does most of that stuff since I messed up pretty big on it a few months ago. He got super mad at me and lectured me for a whole week," Sting said as he shrugged his shoulders, "But tonight, we should have a big pool party at the guild to celebrate. What color do you want your guild mark to be Blondie?"

Rogue watched as Lucy looked down at her hands sadly. He watched as she clenched her fists and then said boldly, "Black."

"That will go nice with your new look," Yukino stated in support of her friend's decision.

"Why did you change your look by the way?" Sting asked as he put another cookie in his mouth.

Rogue looked at Sting in annoyance, but then he was stunned when Lucy said, "Well, I changed it after I told Yukino would join and she said that people were already calling us the Twin Celestial Mages. My spirits can feel my mood too and when I told them I wanted a new look they knew exactly what I needed. Plus it makes sense to be dressed like this."

"Why is that?" Rogue asked because he was very intrigued by Lucy's reasoning.

Lucy's big brown eyes looked at him and her face softened when she answered, "Well you and Sting are the Twin Dragon Slayers, both dark and light. Yukino likes wearing white colors and she looks super cute in them, so I was going to be the dark to her light."

Rogue just smiled gently at Lucy but then Sting ruined the moment and said, "Either way, old look/new look, you look hot no matter what. But I think you should dress in light colors too, that way you and Yukino would both match me because I'm cooler than Rogue."

"Sting-kun gets _all_  the ladies," Lector said with pride as he chowed down on a cookie.

Lucy just started to laugh and Rogue shook his head as Yukino lightly smacked another cookie out of Sting's hand and said, "Let Lucy-san and Rogue have some."

* * *

**Later that night…**

Lucy felt nervous and could feel her legs shaking as she stood before Sting's throne in Sabertooth's guild. She had had a really good day with everyone and she finally started to see a little bit of hope through the pain thanks to Yukino. Even when she had entered the guild earlier with Yukino, several members had come up to her to offer their condolences and to thank her for saving everyone. Everyone here was being so kind to her and understanding.

She tried to gulp down her nerves when Sting stood before her in front of everyone and asked in a serious tone, "Lucy Heartfilia, do you wish to become a Mage of Sabertooth and fight alongside us against our enemies?"

Lucy looked into Sting's blue eyes and replied, "I do."

Sting grinned and got closer to her and asked, "Where would you like your mark?"

Then when Lucy held out her left hand, Sting stuck out his bottom lip and whispered to her, "You sure you want it there? I can put it anywhere." Then he gave her a playful wink.

"Good grief," Lucy heard Orga groan since obviously the God Slayer and Rogue could hear Sting's crude comment.

Lucy just laughed a little and said, "Yes, I'm sure."

"Alright," Sting mumbled as he placed the magical insignia on Lucy's left hand.

Then the Sabertooth Master declared loudly, "Welcome to Sabertooth Blondie!"

Cheers erupted in the guild and Lucy wondered if her Fairy Tail mark was gone, but she decided that she would look later. She stared down at her new mark with a smile. It was the sign of a new chapter in her life.

"Now everyone strip down and let's swim!" Sting yelled as he threw his top off.

Lucy looked over to see Yukino, Frosch, and Rogue smiling at her and Lucy finally started to feel the giant hole in her heart start to fill back up a little bit.


	3. Chapter 3

Lucy and Yukino were changing in the girl's locker room into the new swimsuits that Virgo brought for them. The Maid Spirit insisted that the new Twin Celestial's coordinate their swimsuits, but not before she asked to be punished by both of them. Yukino's was a light blue bikini that had little black stars on it and Lucy's bikini was black, but had a light blue stars all over it.

When Lucy was changing, she noticed that her Fairy Tail insignia was still on her right hand. Her brow furrowed as it brought up painful memories again. She didn't even know it was possible to have two guild insignias at the same time. She supposed that she'd have Crux look into it for her; however, Virgo came back with a waterproof glove to go with Lucy's bathing suit so that she could cover up the pink mark.

"Is it still there?" Yukino asked Lucy as she helped tie Lucy's hair up into a bun since it was so long now.

Lucy replied with a sad voice, "Yeah, I don't know why though."

Yukino thought about it for a bit then said, "Maybe it's your heart holding onto it. Even though you went through a horrible loss, you still love everyone because that's who you are. Your love for them wouldn't suddenly vanish."

"Maybe, you are probably right though. But I want you to know that I am really thankful for everything that you have done and I am really excited about being partners with you. I feel like there is hope again being a Sabertooth Mage," Lucy said with a faint smile.

Then Lucy saw Yukino blush as she nervously asked, "I'm really happy to hear that…a-and I-I was wondering, would it be ok if I just called you Lucy? Since we are a team now..."

Lucy could feel her heart fill up a little more again at Yukino's adorable request and replied, "Of course silly! You could have always just called me Lucy." Then Lucy threw a towel playfully at Yukino.

The girls laughed and started to head for the door when Minerva walked in. Lucy froze in fear for a second but then Yukino grabbed her hand and gave it a gentle reassuring squeeze, almost knowing exactly what Lucy needed, and said kindly, "Hello Minerva. Are you going to come swim with us?"

Lucy thought Minerva almost looked timid before them. Then the dark haired woman nodded and replied, "I u-um wanted to apologize to Lucy too, for what I did at the games."

Lucy felt sympathy for the woman who stood before her, it couldn't have been easy on Minerva growing up with a father like Jeimma. After all, Lucy knew what it was like growing up with a father that had expectations that she could never live up to. Lucy looked at Minerva with a faint smile and said, "I forgive you Minerva. We are guild mates now."

A few tears fell down Minerva's face and she said, "Thank you, I know I probably don't deserve it but it still means a lot. I also wanted to tell you that I'm sorry about Aquarius and your loss and I think you are really brave for joining us after what I did to you and after what you have been through."

Lucy tried to fight back her tears and then hugged Minerva, shocking the woman. Yukino just smiled at the interaction between the former enemies and felt hope that Lucy would heal just fine in Sabertooth.

"Thank you," Lucy said in amazement. How could it be that a former enemy recognized Lucy's pain when her own team didn't even…well, her former team…

After Lucy regained her composure she said, "Minerva, if it's ok with you, I'd really like to train with you sometime."

Minerva smiled warmly and replied, "I'd like that a lot."

Lucy smiled at the woman and thanked her. She had told Cancer that she wanted to change and didn't want to be Lucy of Fairy Tail anymore. Part of that meant she had to learn to survive without the aid of her team. She had a new team now and even though she trusted them, she wanted to prove to them and herself that she was stronger than how she felt. She wanted to be stronger so that she would never lose another friend the way that she lost Aquarius. If she had just been stronger, then maybe she wouldn't have lost anyone.

Yukino and Lucy then left to let Minerva change and said they'd see her at the pool. Lucy held onto Yukino's hand again and accepted the warmth and contact from her friend. Lucy never had any siblings and she wondered if this is how it felt as Yukino smiled at her.

When they got to the pool, cheers erupted again and both girls started blushing when they heard a few of their guild mates whisper, " _They are so cute together_!" That's when Lucy realized that Sabertooth mostly consisted of men.

The Dragon Slayers turned to see the Celestial Mages and Sting muttered to Rogue, "Damn, they are sexy. But it looks like Blondie's other guild mark didn't disappear."

Rogue nodded his head as he watched Lucy, with a waterproof glove over her right hand, get into the pool with Yukino. He felt his breath catch when Lucy's eyes met his and then she gave him a sweet smile. Yukino and Lucy were smiling and talking when Orga and Rufus swam up to them and Rogue could hear them welcoming Lucy to the guild. Lucy seemed to fit right in.

"Oh shit, we have to get over there before Orga steals both of them. I don't know if it's his singing, his magic, or his muscles but the ladies always throw themselves at him and we can't have him sweeping Yukino and Lucy off of their feet before I've had a fighting chance!" Sting growled at Rogue.

Rogue arched his eyebrow and asked, "I thought it was you that got  _all_  the ladies?"

"Shut up," Sting pouted as they started swimming towards their friends.

Lucy looked over at Rogue again, who was now swimming towards her with Sting, and she felt like her heart did a flip in her chest. Earlier that day, she had found the Shadow Dragon Slayer so easy to talk to. Although he was reserved, he was intelligent and kind. She thought she would be scared of him since she saw what a possible version of his future was like, and that version killed her, but she wasn't at all. She didn't want that future for Rogue and was going to make sure that it never happened to him. However, Lucy couldn't ignore the fact that Rogue was also hot as hell with his scar and his black hair pulled into that ponytail. She felt a rush inside of her every time his ruby eyes looked at her.

She knew she had to get ahold of herself because she was standing too close to Dragon Slayers and a God Slayer and they would smell her arousal. She tried to quickly think of something to distract her.

Luckily she didn't have to think too long because she suddenly felt an arm wrap around her neck and Sting yelled, "How are my sexy little twins doing?"

Everyone grimaced at the question and it was Orga that said, "That sounds weird. It makes it sound like you are their father, but you are attracted to them. Creepy pervert."

"I agree," Rogue said dryly.

"And Sting, Orga told me that you suggested to our Lucy that she put her guild mark in a more scandalous area on her body. That's terrible," Rufus added in as he shook his head in disappointment.

"Sting! You're an animal!" Yukino exclaimed as she pulled away from Sting's grasp.

Lucy felt a hand on her arm under the water and looked down to see that Rogue was pulling her closer towards him, to get her away from Sting too. She swallowed hard as she looked at Rogue who had a faint smile on his face as his red eyes looked into hers. Their bodies were barely brushing up against each in the pool and Lucy felt like her aching heart would beat out of her chest if this kept up.

"I didn't mean it like that!" Sting tried to defend himself.

"Is Sting being a pervert again?" Minerva asked with a small smile as she approached Sting from behind then jumped into the water.

"Of course," Orga goaded, "Is there any other version of Sting?"

"Sting-Kun is the biggest pervert!" Lector yelled on the side of the pool as he sipped his lemonade.

"Frosch thinks so too," Frosch waved at his friends to agree with Lector.

"Oh wait! Ahhh! I didn't mean that Master Sting! Stink-Kun is the least perverted person I know!" Lector yelled in a panic.

Everyone just laughed at Lector who was freaking out at the thought of insulting his best friend. Then Sting yelled, "I didn't mean it like that! Let's just play a game!"

"What did you have in mind?" Rufus asked.

"Chicken," Sting said proudly.

"Why, so you can try and grope Lucy's, Yukino's, or my legs?" Minerva asked as she splashed her master.

Lucy couldn't help but laugh at the interaction between all of the mages. They all seemed so different than the people she had met for the first time at the Grand Magic Games. Suddenly a splashing contest began and when Lucy backed up she found herself up against Rogue's chest. She felt like she couldn't breathe as his eyes shone at her and he gently wrapped his arms around her and pulled her away with him from the splash battle. She felt her body getting hot as his strong hands gently brushed across her soft skin. It was like she completely forgot her surroundings every time he touched her or looked at her.

Finally her thoughts were pulled back to the moment when she heard Sting yell, "Fine! What game do you want to play?"

"We could set up the net and play volleyball," Minerva offered.

Everyone agreed that it sounded like a good idea and Sting talked Dobengal into playing with them too so that they would have even teams. Then they all drew straws to see who the teams would be. Lucy bit her lip in excitement when she saw that she and Rogue were on the same team, although she was sad that Yukino was on the opposite team. However, the teams played out very evenly as Orga and Rufus were also on Lucy's team and Sting, Minerva, and Dobengal were on Yukino's team.

"Thank god Orga and Minerva aren't on the same team or we all would have been slaughtered," Sting said in relief.

Lucy felt Rogue swim up behind her and he whispered in her ear while Sting and Minerva were fighting over who would serve first, "Lucy, if Sting serves first his serve always lands in nearly the same spot."

Then Lucy felt Rogue's hands on her hips under the water as he gently moved her over a few inches. She felt tremors run up her body from his touch and the sound of his sensual voice. She realized that every time Rogue touched her, it made her sad heart come alive again. It was like her body was being jolted with adrenaline to wake itself back up and live.

She turned to smile at him, their faces only an inch away, and whispered back, "Thanks for the tip. Let's kick our Master's ass."

Rogue grinned, and Lucy nearly swooned on the spot since Rogue hardy ever smiled that much, and he swam back to his spot as Sting won the battle over Minerva, because Minerva just wanted to play.

"Suck on my balls losers!" Sting yelled as he sent over his first serve.

However, Lucy was ready for it because Rogue had been right on target. Lucy bumped the ball up into the air, allowing Rufus to set it up, and then Orga slammed it back down on the other side so hard that even Dobengal couldn't get to it fast enough.

"What were you saying Master Pervert?" Orga laughed as Sting stood in the water with his mouth hanging open.

"If my memory serves me correctly, I believe he said that we should suck his balls," Rufus said in disgust as he got ready to serve.

"That doesn't sound appealing at all," Lucy accidently murmured out.

"I would have to agree with Lucy on that," Rufus smiled towards the blonde.

"See Sting, the one girl and the one gay man on our team finds your genitals repulsive," Rogue said with a dry voice but had a slight smirk on his face.

"I told you I should have served first," Minerva said as she stuck out her tongue at Sting.

Lucy looked over at Rogue and whispered, because she knew he would hear, "You were right."

Rogue just smile back and mouthed, "Good job."

* * *

The game seemed to last forever because Sting decided that Minerva would just focus on Orga since he was a powerhouse. The entire guild had gotten caught up in the volleyball game and were cheering and placing bets on who would win.

Many of the members had been drinking for quite a while and Lucy was shocked that no fights had randomly started. She felt her heart grow warm because she was actually having a lot of fun. More fun than she thought possible at least, because she noticed that she was actually laughing and smiling again. However, she couldn't help but wonder where her old team was and if they were all ok. But almost every time she noticed when she started getting sad, Rogue was right there and brought her smile back.

The game was neck and neck, Lucy had just sent the ball back over when Yukino and Sting called for it at the same time.

Everything happened so fast when Lucy heard Dobengal yell, "Watch out!"

But it was too late, Sting had ran smack into Yukino and then knocked them both underwater. Then the volleyball landed.

"We win!" Orga yelled and cheers erupted from everyone who had been cheering for them.

Then Lucy noticed it, Yukino's top floating in the water as Sting and Yukino came back up and Yukino attempted to cover her bare chest.

All the men on the side of the pool started to get nosebleeds and Sting yelled as he threw his arms around Yukino in an attempt to shield her, "Oh my god! I'm so sorry Yukino!"

Yukino screamed and turned bright red when her bare chest touched Sting's bare and muscular chest. Luckily Minerva was quick once she realized what had happened and used her magic to teleport Yukino, and unfortunately Sting since he wouldn't let go, to the girl's locker room.

Orga shook his head and said, "I told you guys he was a pervert."

"I'm sure Yukino is putting him in his place now," Minerva said with a smile as she also teleported Yukino's top after Lucy handed it to her.

Everyone went about their business and continued to party and have a good time. The music got turned up and shots were being served out to everyone.

Lucy swam up to Rogue and said, "I'm going to go check on Yukino."

"I'll go with you, because Sting might need to be dragged back," Rogue said kindly.

When Lucy got out of the pool, Rogue handed her a towel. She could feel her mouth start to water and she looked at Rogue's chest and abs. His muscles looked amazing as the droplets of pool water glistened off of him. He had lean and tight muscles and the most amazing six pack she had ever seen. His arms had felt so good when he had wrapped them around her earlier and she wanted to feel them again.

Then Lucy mentally scolded herself again and finished drying off. She had to get a grip on herself. Rogue was her guild mate and now apparently a part of her team. She shouldn't be mindgasming over his dark and mysterious ways. She wasn't ready for a relationship, she felt like she was too damaged and wouldn't make anyone happy with how she was right now.

Rogue noticed that Lucy's smell changed slightly and her heartbeat quickened. He looked over at her to see that her face was bright red, but her smell…it made him want to growl because she smelled so damn intoxicating to him. However he chastised himself, because Lucy was suffering from a great loss and needed to heal. She didn't need him pursuing her like he realized he wanted to.

Lucy could feel a fire start to burn inside of her so she quickly asked, "Are you ready"

Rogue nodded as Lucy nervously walked by him. As they walked down the hall together, Rogue said, "You play volleyball really well. You are very quick. Dobengal was even impressed and that says a lot."

"Thanks," Lucy laughed, "I kind of learned to be quick thanks to my old team. Simple pillow fights could suddenly turn into a bloodbath in a split second."

Rogue watched as Lucy's smile suddenly vanished and the sadness in her eyes returned. He hated seeing her so hurt and he wished that there was more that he could do. She didn't deserve what had happened to her...then to just be abandoned...it irked him and he had to agree with Sting, he'd probably want to kick Natsu's ass when he saw him again.

Then before Rogue could comfort her, Sting was thrown out of the girl's locker room in front of them by Libra who used her gravity magic to slam Sting into the floor.

Libra then looked at Lucy and said, "Hello Lucy, you can come in."

Lucy just laughed nervously and stepped around an injured Sting, so that she could check on Yukino. Libra used her magic one more time on Sting when he tried to get up, but then nodded at Rogue and returned to the Celestial Realm.

Rogue just leaned against the wall and said to Sting, "You deserved that." But the Shadow Dragon Slayer couldn't help but worry about the blonde that just left his side.

* * *

The Dragon Slayers only had to wait a few minutes when Lucy walked out nervously then went to stand by Rogue. When Yukino walked out, Sting tried to apologize again with his cheeky grin and Yukino blushed wildly and said, "It's fine…just don't do it again and don't bring it up EVER again."

"Or clearly Libra will beat you up," Rogue said dryly to Sting.

Lucy just laughed Rogue's remarked; however, Sting ignored it as he walked next to Yukino and tried to cheer her back up. Lucy wished that Sting could see that he was just making Yukino feel more uncomfortable about what had happened and was flustering her. The poor girl had been a stuttering mess when Lucy entered the locker room, because Sting had ended up landing his face on her boobs after Minerva had teleported them to the locker room.

When they all walked back in, Minerva who was sitting next to Rufus waved them all over to the bar. Yukino quickly sat down in the open seat next to Minerva and Lucy sat on the other side of Yukino so Sting would stop pestering her for a little bit. Then of course, Rogue quickly took the empty seat next to Lucy—leaving Sting on the end.

"What do you girls want?" Minerva asked them, sensing that Yukino needed something to take the edge off.

Lucy asked with a smile, "Do you have any strawberry margaritas?"

"Yes we do," Orga said as he popped up from behind the bar and he poured a purple drink in a glass for Minerva.

"You know how to make drinks?" Lucy asked Orga in surprise. She had found Orga to be quite fun when they played volleyball together. He was a lot nicer than she had originally thought he would be.

"He makes the best drinks in the world," Minerva praised as she drank hers down, "He's so cute with his little apron on too."

Orga just smiled at Lucy and said, "As you can see, Minerva is a sweet drunk and a lightweight. That drink barely has 3% of alcohol in it."

Lucy just sweatdropped and asked, "How many has she had? I never would have pictured Minerva being so..."

"Nice?" Rufus laughed as he drank what appeared to be an iced tea with a maroon umbrella in it.

"Well she's only had two drinks so far. She never drank before Tartaros though. It's nice seeing a softer side to her, even if it is a bit unnerving," Orga laughed as he slid a jumbo margarita towards Lucy and added, "Now we'll see how much of a lightweight you are."

"You forget, I came from a guild full of drunks," Lucy said with a laugh then she took a sip of her drink and let herself enjoy the moment as Orga laughed at her response then gave two beers to Rogue and Sting.

Orga then leaned in front of Yukino and asked, "Now, what can I get my other favorite Celestial Mage so that we can see your pretty smile again? You probably need a drink after our Perverted Master fondled you."

"Yukino's smile is the best!" Minerva agreed in a voice that mimicked Lector's.

"Frosch thinks so too," the little Exceed said as he sat on top of the bar sipping an alcohol free vanilla milkshake that Orga had made him.

"I didn't fondle her!" Sting yelled at Orga.

Orga just ignored Sting since Yukino was blushing again and he asked her, "How about my Electric Lemonade?"

"Sure," Yukino mumbled but smiled a little when Minerva cheered, thus making Lucy laugh.

Once Yukino and Lucy had made it through a good portion of their drinks, Minerva said loudly, "Let's play a game."

"Drinking games are awful," Orga laughed.

"Pleeeease!" Minerva pouted.

Lucy couldn't help but giggle at how Orga looked so torn by Minerva's pouty lips. The powerful woman looked deceptively innocent. Lucy frowned a little when she thought how Cana would probably like drunk Minerva.

"Fine, but everyone has to play," Orga groaned.

"Yay! I'll go first! We will play 'Never Have I Ever,'" Minerva declared which elicited another groan from Orga and then Rogue too.

Minerva got a devious smile on her face when she looked at Orga and said, "Never Have I Ever: had sex with a woman."

"That's just cheap," Orga shook his head as he, Rogue, and Sting all took a drink.

Lucy didn't know why but she felt a little sad when she saw that Rogue had taken a drink. Their eyes met and it looked like Rogue wanted to tell her something, but then Orga said, "Two can play at that game Minerva. Never Have I Ever: had sex with a man."

Then when only Minerva and Rufus took drinks, the other mages all stared at Yukino and Lucy who were both blushing wildly.

Minerva choked on her drink when Orga laughed, "Well boys it looks like we should rename Yukino and Lucy: The Virgin Twins."

"Orga, that's mean, I think it's a nice change. They are a breath of fresh air in a guild full of lecherous people," Rufus said in defense of his Celestial friends.

"Some of us have some decency!" Yukino stated boldly and Lucy could tell that the poor girl was already a little buzzed from the drink Orga had made her.

"I wasn't making fun of you," Orga smiled, "But apparently you two innocents are now paired up with a horny pair of Dragons."

Lucy and Yukino blushed wildly again and Lucy could feel Rogue's eyes on her, but she dared not look at him. She was still so sad on most days and she didn't want to burden anyone with her pain.

Then Minerva said, "We need to think of some questions because at this rate Yukino and Lucy will win!"

"I got one," Sting said with a wicked grin going along with Minerva, "Never Have I Ever; been a Celestial Mage."

Orga barked out a laugh as Yukino yelled at Sting who just smiling at her, "That's not fair!"

"You agreed to play and aren't Celestial Mages' words their bond?" Sting said with a mocked shocked tone.

Lucy and Yukino looked at each other, then took a drink together as a stance in solidarity.

Then before Lucy or Yukino could ask a question Rogue said, "Never Have I Ever: worn a dress."

Lucy looked at Rogue who just had a slight smirk on his face as Lucy, Yukino, Minerva, and oddly enough Orga took a drink.

Rogue then turned his gaze away from Lucy and asked his guild mate, "Orga, you've worn a dress?"

"I lost a bet," Orga said as he shrugged his shoulders and then topped Lucy's and Yukino's drinks off.

"My memory finds that memory hilarious," Rufus said as he had tears in his eyes from laughing.

Lucy and Yukino couldn't help but laugh at the image of Orga being in a dress, especially after the God Slayer said confidently, "I looked amazing."

Lucy thinking quickly, and perhaps a little too pervy from the alcohol looked at Rogue with a wink and said, "Never Have I Ever: performed oral sex on someone."

Yukino eeped and Minerva just busted out laughing at Lucy's sudden gumption. Then of course everyone besides Yukino and Lucy had to take a drink; however, Lucy got the answer she wanted as Rogue's red eyes gleamed at hers as he took a drink. She thought that knowing that was pretty good knowledge—for future references of course.

Then the other Celestial Mage was quick and said while she looked at Sting, "Never Have I Ever; been accused of being a pervert!"

Lucy cracked up at her friend and only Sting and Orga had to take a drinks during that round. However, just like the volleyball game, the drinking game quickly became a heated competition—but this time it was everyone vs. Yukino and Lucy.

* * *

As the night wore on, Rogue had learned all sorts of interesting things about Lucy. The most obvious one was that she was a peculiar drunk. Lucy and Yukino had gotten drunk fairly quickly since everyone had teamed up against them; however, it took a lot more alcohol than Rogue would have thought it would have to get Lucy drunk. He guessed it was because she had trained in an alcoholic guild.

"They are completely trashed," Orga said as he was laughing at Lucy who was insisting that Minerva should purr like a cat since she was a member of Sabertooth and that meant that she was a kitty cat.

None of it made any sense to Rogue, but he smiled as Lucy looked like she was having a fun time with Yukino and Minerva. Her laugh was infectious to everyone.

Then finally when Lucy asked Frosch if she could try on his costume, Rogue nudged Sting and said, "We better get them home."

Sting agreed quickly when Yukino said she felt hot and was about to undo her top. Sting quickly said, "Lector, have Frosch stay with you in our room tonight because we are going to take Yukino and Blondie home."

Lector yawned and led the other Exceed out of the pool room. Rufus offered to take a very drunk Minerva home and she asked him if she could wear his mask. Orga said he was going to stay behind and clean up the mess since almost everyone in the guild had passed out or gone home already.

Sting walked over to Yukino who was almost about to untie her top, but then when she saw him she stopped and said loudly, "Sting Eucliffe you are an ass!"

"I know," Sting replied, but didn't give Yukino a chance to argue as he scooped the swaying drunk girl up in her arms."

"No!" Yukino tried to say as she weakly smacked his bare chest.

"I'm taking you home," Sting looked at her and said sternly.

After Sting's statement, Rogue saw a deep blush coating Yukino's face then she nodded her head and leaned against Sting's chest. Rogue just sighed at the interaction, because Yukino was still clearly annoyed with Sting from what had happened earlier, but Rogue also had picked up on how Sting had watched Yukino carefully the rest of the evening.

Then Rogue heard Lucy moan, "Rrrrrroogue, will you carry me too?"

The sound of Lucy's sensual voice sent shivers down his spine and when he turned to look at her, her chocolatey doe eyes were shinning with lust as she bit her lip.

Rogue cleared his throat and went over and scooped Lucy up into his arms. She immediately wrapped her arms around his neck and moaned in his ear, "Rogue, why are so fucking sexy?"

Rogue heard Orga whistle from behind the bar. The Lightning Mage nodded his head towards Lucy, who was now tracing invisible circles on Rogue's chest, and said, "Good luck with that one."

Rogue just took a deep breath and headed towards the door. He had to get out before anyone could see his massive erection.

However it only got worse when he heard Lucy sniffle as she asked, "My Dragon Slayer, are you mad at me?"

Hearing Lucy call him her Dragon Slayer made him want to groan in pleasure. She was not making it easy on him when he tried to reply, "Of course not."

"Good, I never want you to be mad at me," Lucy said quietly, "You make my heart feel full again like everything will be ok."

Rogue stopped in his tracks and looked down at the girl in his arms as she looked up at the starry night sky with blush on her face. He had no idea why or how, but he knew he would never let go of Lucy. He was determined to bring her smile back.

Lucy looked at him and her eyes widened as she asked again, "Did I make you mad?"

Rogue just chuckled as he continued the trek towards the girls' apartment and replied gently, "Lucy, I don't think you could ever make me mad."

"You'll leave though...won't you? Like Aquarius, Natsu, Happy, Erza, and Gray...you'll leave and I'll never see you again. I'll lose you, Yukino, and everyone in Sabertooth," Lucy said heartbreakingly.

Rogue looked at her and he wanted to kiss her and make her problems go away, but instead he simply said, "I'll never leave you. You're mine forever, my beautiful Lucy."

He doubted that she would remember that he said that since she was so drunk, but seeing the huge smile that brightened her face made it worth it. He had spoken the truth and somewhere deep inside he knew that if they day ever came, he would die before he parted from her. He wanted her to smile again every day. He wanted to help ease her loss and pain.

He smiled as she nuzzled into his neck and said, "You'll be mine forever too, My Dragon Slayer."

Then he could tell that she fell asleep in his arms as they neared their apartment.

As Rogue opened the door, with his dragon hearing, he heard Yukino say, "Why not Sting? I need you."

Rogue really wished sometimes that he didn't have Dragon hearing when he heard Yukino start to cry. Then he heard Sting say seriously, "I'm sorry. I don't deserve you, because you are too good for me."

Rogue understood that feeling as he looked down at a smiling and sleeping Lucy who was cuddling his chest.

Then Rogue heard Yukino ask Sting, "But if you like me then why won't you have sex with me?"

"You're brave, kind, and beautiful. Every time I see you I wish I could say that you were mine, but you are drunk right now and I would never take advantage of you like that. You are one of the few people in this world that I actually respect Yukino. I want you to be proud of me and I want to be with you when you aren't drunk…if you'll have me," Rogue heard Sting confess.

Rogue couldn't help but smile when he heard Yukino ask, "Then when I'm not drunk, will you try to be a better person and prove to me how you feel and stop flirting with other girls?"

"I'll do my best and sorry for being an idiot," Rogue heard Sting respond with a kind tone.

Rogue gently laid Lucy down on her bed right when Virgo popped into Lucy's room. Rogue looked at the Maid Spirit as she said, "Thank you for taking care of my Hime-sama, Dragon Slayer. I will get her changed and then take care of Lady Yukino too."

Rogue just nodded and thanked the spirit who just smiled back at him politely. Then he walked out to the living room just as Sting walked out of Yukino's room. Sting looked at him and said, "Rogue, I think these girls are going to be the death of us."

Rogue just sighed and nodded before Sting added, "I don't like leaving them here alone like this. They are going to be so hungover tomorrow. Will you wait here with them and I'll run back to the guild to get us some clothes and a few of our things?"

"Sure," Rogue agreed, because Sting actually had a good plan for once.

"Ok, I'll be back soon," Sting said as he headed out.

It only took a few minutes for Virgo to help both Lucy and Yukino, before she thanked Rogue again and returned to the spirit world. Then just as Rogue leaned back on Yukino's couch, he heard Lucy mumble, "Aquarius, where are you?"

A scowl settled on his face, when he heard her whisper, "Natsu…Happy…gone."

He suddenly realized she was having a nightmare because he heard her heartbeat quicken and her breathing became erratic, so he got up and ran to her room. He saw her shaking in a fetal position with her hands on her head as she mumbled out the names of her old teammates.

He rushed to her side and gently shook her and said, "Lucy, wake up you're having a nightmare."

Her eyes opened and tears were already in them as she blinked a few times and tried to recognize her surroundings. He felt his breath catch when her tears stated falling and she whispered to him, "Rogue, please don't go. The nightmares are returning again and I can't fight them off tonight."

Rogue realized that it was probably from the alcohol. Lucy had been creating barriers in her mind to shut the pain out, but the alcohol made her lose control of those barriers.

He heard Sting walk back in, but he couldn't leave Lucy like this. He crawled in bed next to her and put his arms around her and said, "I'll keep the nightmares away."

* * *

Lucy opened her eyes slowly and saw that she was in her room in Yukino's house. Her head was pounding and spinning at the same time, but noticed that her curtains were drawn shut. What the hell had happened last night?

She noticed that she was in a black tank top and shorts, so she figured Virgo must have changed her at some point. God it hurt to think.

As she sat up on the bed, she felt her stomach turn and she covered her mouth because of the sudden nauseated feeling that rushed through her body. She felt disgusting and wanted to shower, but she wasn't sure how she was going to stand up to do that.

She heard her bedroom door open, but dared not look to see who it was because she was fighting her body so that she wouldn't throw up. She hated throwing up, it made her cry. She kept her eyes closed and her mouth was firmly shut when she heard Rogue's gentle voice ask, "How are you feeling?"

Lucy wanted to thank him for being quiet, but if she opened her mouth...she knew she would lose control. She heard Rogue move and then felt something being placed in her lap as Rogue sat down next to her on the bed. When Lucy peaked her eyes open to see what it was, she grimaced when she saw that he had placed a trash can in her lap. This was humiliating. She didn't want to throw up in front of Rogue! They haven't even been teammates for a full day and even though she couldn't remember why...she had a feeling that it would be really embarrassing to puke in front of him. Especially since he was such a serious personality.

Unfortunately, Sting opened the door and said in his usual loud voice, "Rogue! I made us some bacon and eggs!"

Lucy lost it and began to puke in the trash, because of the combination of Sting's loud voice and the nauseating smell of eggs that had wafted into her room. She felt Rogue stand up as the Shadow Dragon Slayer pushed his friend out the door and whispered, "Way to go."

"Sorry Blondie!" Lucy heard Sting whisper loudly before Rogue shut the door in Sting's face.

Just like clockwork, Lucy felt the tears running down her cheeks as she humiliatingly lost her cookies in front of Rogue. In-between breaths she managed to say to Rogue, "Don't look."

However, she could hear Rogue going into her bathroom then running the water to her sink. She wanted him to leave, this was too embarrassing. Suddenly she felt a cool wet washcloth touch her hand and heard Rogue whisper, "This will help."

"T-thanks," Lucy whispered out as her hand was shaking.

Just as Lucy was wiping her mouth, Loke and Virgo appeared in Lucy's room. Virgo had her usual blank expression, but Loke looked like he was trying not to laugh when he whispered, "My Princess, I think you may have drank a little too much last night."

Lucy eyed Loke dangerously, but Loke wasn't fazed at all. In fact, he was rather happy that Lucy allowed herself to have fun last night and live in the moment. Then Loke looked at Rogue who had helped Lucy stand up and said, "Thanks for looking out for Lucy last night."

Rogue just nodded as Virgo motioned for him to help Lucy to the bathroom. Then Virgo said, "Brother, can you go get Lady Yukino?"

Loke's smile widened because he couldn't wait to see how Yukino handled being hungover. The other Celestial Mage was always so polite and put together, this would be amusing to see.

However, when Loke walked out of the room to go get Yukino, Rogue heard Sting yell, "Hey! Who the hell are you?"

"I'm Lucy's and Yukino's Knight in Shining Armor and I am retrieving the fair Lady Yukino so that we can all bathe together," Loke said playfully in attempt to irritate the young guild master.

"Like hell you are!" Sting yelled.

Virgo and Rogue looked at each other and Rogue knew he would have to intervene, so he left Lucy with Virgo and went to go help Loke, who was now blocking the door to Yukino's room.

Rogue shut the door to Lucy's room and said in an exasperated tone, "Sting, let Loke pass. He's one of Lucy's spirits and he was the one that saved Yukino and Lucy during the games. He's the one who has been here with them and they watched the movie with him."

Sting studied Loke and narrowed his eyes before he said, "You look like a playboy."

"Jealous?" Loke asked with a smirk.

Then before Sting could lose his shit anymore, Rogue grabbed Sting by the scruff of his shirt and said in an annoyed tone, "We need to get rid of the smell of your cooking."

Loke just chuckled at the interaction between the Dragon Slayers and thought how Lucy seemed to have found a good team. He had watched a little of her interactions with the Sabertooth Mages last night, because he could feel that she was feeling happy again. It was a step in the right direction.

Then Loke carried Yukino to Lucy's bathroom and the poor girl was as bad off as Lucy was. Virgo thanked Loke, who then returned to the Celestial Realm. Virgo helped Lucy and Yukino get ready for a shower and tried to help them get cleaned up.

* * *

Sting and Rogue were in the kitchen where Sting tried to argue that the girls needed protein, but Rogue insisted that the girls were more dehydrated and needed electrolytes more. Plus Rogue pointed out how the smell of food made Lucy puke.

As the two Dragon Slayers cleaned up, they ignored talking to each other about what had transpired last night. It was like an unspoken understanding between the two, because Sting knew Rogue had heard him and Yukino talking and Rogue knew that Sting was aware of him staying with Lucy because of her nightmares. It had been a long night, because Rogue had to wake Lucy up a few times because of the dreams and Sting helped Yukino who started puking in the night. The men both knew that when everyone found out that they were all a team, then most people would think that Sting and Rogue were the strongest and in charge. However, the Slayers both knew that the Celestial Mages already had them wrapped around their fingers.

Suddenly they could hear Yukino groan from the bathroom, "Lucy, what happened last night?"

"I don't know?" Lucy whimpered back, "It must have been bad."

"What's the last thing you remember?" Yukino asked.

Rogue listened carefully as Lucy responded, "Drinking. You?"

"Orga said he wore dresses I think," Yukino said in confusion.

Rogue wasn't surprised that Lucy didn't remember their conversation; however, he still couldn't help but be a little sad by the events. He wanted her to know what he had said, because he had meant it. He wanted her to be happy at Sabertooth and trust them.

Then Sting and Rogue nearly dropped what was in their hands when Virgo said, "You could always ask your Slayers what happened since they brought you home and took care of you."

"T-t-they aren't our Slayers," Yukino stuttered out and Rogue noticed that a frown appeared on Sting's face.

"You each had your own the whole night," Virgo mischievously said in her monotone voice before she asked, "Punishment?"

"T-t-the whole night?" Lucy asked in shock.

Rogue and Sting nearly stopped breathing when Virgo admitted, "Rogue stayed with you, Hime-sama, and Master Sting stayed with Lady Yukino."

Nothing more could be heard as the water to the shower turned on and Sting sighed out, "I told you they'd be the death of us."

* * *

Once they were done getting cleaned up, Virgo changed out the trash and dismissed herself to the spirit world. The girls put on some yoga pants and t-shirts. It wasn't their normal attire to show in front of people, but Lucy had still thrown up a few times in the bathroom and Yukino could barely walk.

The two girls sat on the floor in Lucy's room, because they got so exhausted and they were fairly certain the room was moving. Yukino rested her head on Lucy's shoulder as she whispered, "What should we do?"

Lucy grit her teeth, because she knew exactly what Yukino was talking about...or better yet... _who_  Yukino was talking about. As Lucy leaned on the trashcan, she whispered back, "I don't know I'm too weak right now to keep my spirits out for very long and I'd feel bad for asking Virgo or Loke to stay with me again. They've already done so much for me with everything that has happened."

Yukino replied, "I'm the same, I can barely keep my head up so I know I can't keep anyone out for long. But I don't want to ask Sting and Rogue for help either, Sting probably won't let us forget it."

"I'll trust your judgment," Lucy said as she stared to feel her nausea return.

Then much to the girls' shock, Lucy's bedroom door opened and there stood Sting and Rogue. Sting just sighed and said, "We're a team, so don't be stubborn and let us help. Besides we got to get you two ready to go on a mission tomorrow."

Lucy looked up and saw Rogue's ruby eyes gazing at her. She thought he almost looked sad, but she couldn't be sure because her head was spinning. Then Sting came over and picked Yukino up off the floor and carried her to the living room.

When Rogue came over to get Lucy, she looked at him and said quietly, "I'm sorry you had to take care of me last night. My old team told me that I can be a handful when I'm drunk, so if I did anything to offend you I'm really sorry Rogue."

He held her in his arms and replied, "You did nothing to offend me. I even told you last night on our way home that you could never make me mad."

Lucy felt her face heat up and her heart started pounding, because she vaguely remembered Rogue saying something like that. She did remember playing volleyball with Rogue and having a lot of fun with her new guild. Then she nearly passed out when she remembered some of the 'Never Have I Ever, statements. Why did she have to get so drunk?!

Rogue carefully sat Lucy down on the love-seat while Sting went to get the girls some water and crackers. If anyone in the guild saw them right now, Rogue knew that they would think that the Dragon Slayers were whipped.

There was a small knock on the door just as Rogue sat a trashcan down on the floor next to Lucy and Yukino, just in case. When the Slayer went to answer the door, he smiled when Frosch and Lector happily greeted him.

The two Exceeds walked in when Sting came back with the supplies and then Lector asked in a worried voice, "Oh no! Are Yukino-san and Lucy-san sick?"

"They'll feel better soon, Lector," Sting said with a smile as he handed Yukino a water.

Lector walked over to Yunino and said, "Don't worry Sting-kun is the best nurse! He took care of me before when I had a fever. He gave me ice-cream and everything."

Yukino smiled weakly at Lector then snuggled up with the Exceed, who blushed as Yukino gave him a kiss on the cheek.

Frosch went over to Lucy and crawled up in her lap in an attempt to comfort her. Lucy felt warmth in her heart at the little Exceed's gesture. Even though she felt like shit...she felt oddly at ease.

Sting and Rogue just looked at each other because they knew they'd be staying there the whole day again when Lector asked Yukino if they could all watch a movie together and have a slumber party. Frosch clearly agreed with Lector and of course Yukino and Lucy couldn't argue with the sweet Exceeds' request.

Rogue sat down next to Lucy, who gave him a sweet but still weak smile and Sting picked out a movie, after he made the Exceeds some popcorn, before he went to sit by Yukino and Lector.

Just as the movie was about to start, Lector said cheerfully, "It feels like we are a big family."

"Frosch agrees," the little green Exceed said as he smiled at up at Lucy and Rogue.

Rogue faintly smiled when he heard Sting mutter, so that only he could hear him, "They'll be the death of us."


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning finally arrived as Lucy laid in her be staring straight up at the ceiling. This week had been a whirlwind of emotions; traveling to Sabertooth, moving in with Yukino, becoming a member of Sabertooth, joining a team with Yukino, getting drunk with her new guild, and puking in front of the sexiest man she had ever seen. She still wished that she could remember what had happened between her and Rogue while she was drunk. She grabbed her pillow and buried her face in it, because she sent up a silent prayer that she didn't ask him to pet her like a cat.

Despite the fact that she probably embarrassed herself while she was drunk, she felt oddly at ease. She felt like she had made the right decision by joining Sabertooth, because she really loved Yukino and had so much fun with her. It was really nice hanging out with someone who understood her magic.

Yesterday, despite puking her guts out in front of Rogue for most of the day, she had had a pretty incredible day. They all had a movie marathon together and Rogue and Sting took care of their every need. She was impressed at how attentive they had been, because Natsu and Gray had been kind of clueless at helping her and Erza with things. Either way, she wanted to pay them back somehow.

After she got ready for the day, she put on one of the other outfits Virgo had brought for her. It was similar to the one that she wore on the day that she joined Sabertooth; however, today it was a gray top that showed some side boob. She liked it.

When she walked out of her room, she couldn't help but giggle a little when she saw Rogue and Sting asleep on the loveseat and couch with Frosch and Lector. They all looked so adorable. She started to make her way towards the kitchen when Yukino came out of her room. She smiled at Lucy then saw their sleeping teammates and motioned for Lucy to follow her to the kitchen.

Yukino looked at Lucy and said, "Lucy, I feel so bad that they took care of us all day yesterday. I feel like we should do something nice for them."

Lucy smiled at her friend and replied, "I was thinking the same thing. How about since you and I can actually eat normal food today, we make them a big breakfast?"

"That sounds great!" Yukino agreed excitedly then started to show Lucy where she kept all of her kitchen items.

* * *

As the girls started to prepare waffles, bacon, sausage, eggs, and a fruit salad, Lucy asked, "So do you know what kind of mission we will go on?"

"I don't have any idea. Maybe we should let them pick this time as another way to make it up to them. Then we can pick the next one," Yukino said as she pulled a waffle out of her waffle maker.

Lucy nodded and then asked quietly, "U-um, so what are Rogue and Sting like on missions?"

Yukino thought about the question for a minute before she replied, "They are both very strategical. They think everything through and possible back up scenarios in case their first plan doesn't work. I always had a lot of fun with them in the past on missions. Plus, Frosch and Lector are super fun to hang out with."

"That sounds really nice," Lucy said with a smile because she might actually walk away with a full reward, but she got scared because she didn't want to let any of them down. She didn't want to be weak and then someone get hurt because of her.

Yukino looked over and saw the sad look on Lucy's face and then added, "Lucy, you have nothing to worry about. Sting and Rogue are really amazing and they wouldn't want to be our teammates if they didn't think we couldn't handle missions with them."

Lucy felt reassured by Yukino's words and nodded her head and said, "Well, I'll go wake them up since it's done."

As Yukino started to put the food on serving plates, Lucy went out and smiled as Frosch was sprawled out on Rogue's chest. She felt bad that Rogue had slept on the cramped love seat all night. She had insisted that he take her bed last night, but he had refused.

She walked past a snoring Sting and kneeled down beside Rogue. She gently shook his arm and whispered, "Rogue, breakfast is ready."

Lucy smiled when Rogue's eyes opened sleepily and he smiled at her and whispered, "Good morning, sexy."

Lucy's face turned bright red and she felt like her heart had gotten stuck in her throat. Rogue's eyes widened when he realized what he said and he couldn't think of a single thing to say as he watched Lucy Look down with her blushed face.

Suddenly Sting moaned in his sleep, "Bacon. Mmmm…Yukino."

"I-I'll g-go t-tell Yukino that y-you guys are coming," Lucy stammered out then shot up and practically ran towards the kitchen.

Rogue looked up at the ceiling and groaned, "I'm such a moron."

When Lucy ran into the kitchen, Yukino turned around in shock and asked, "Lucy, what's wrong."

Lucy's heart was beating uncontrollably fast and she couldn't respond to her friend. Did Rogue mean to say that to her? Did he think she was someone else? Why the hell had Sting moaned bacon and then Yukino's name?

So many things were running through her mind and then Yukino put her hand onto Lucy's head and said worriedly, "Lucy, I think you have a fever. Do you need to go lay down? We don't have to go on a mission today if you aren't feeling well."

"N-no, I'll be fine in just a second. I j-just got flustered," Lucy whispered back.

Then before Yukino could ask anything else, Sting and Rogue walked into the kitchen and Sting said, "I thought I smelled bacon."

"Yukino! Did you make waffles!?" Lector yelled in excitement as he followed Sting over to where the food was.

"Yes I did," Yukino said with a smile, "Lucy and I wanted to make you guys breakfast to thank you for taking care of us yesterday."

Lucy couldn't look at Rogue when he came into the kitchen, she felt like if she looked at him then her heart might shatter. He couldn't have meant her when he woke up. He was probably having a dream about someone else. She felt so stupid.

* * *

As the six were eating breakfast together, Lucy found herself seated between Frosch and Rogue again. However, she continued to stare down at her plate because of her nerves. She could feel Rogue look at her every so often, but she dared not look at him. She couldn't handle rejection right now on top of everything else.

The breakfast was almost awkwardly quiet for, but that could have just been Lucy's imagination, then Sting finally spoke up and said, "Yukino this bacon is the best I have ever had. How did you make it?"

"Lucy made the bacon," Yukino said in a kind tone.

"O-oh, u-um. It's good Lucy," Sting said briskly.

Lucy just nodded her head and kept looking at her plate. The awkward silence continued until Lector asked, "So, what kind of job are we going on?"

Rogue and Sting spoke simultaneously, "Monster Hunt."

"I need to kick the shit out of something today," Sting mumbled in frustration and Rogue nodded his head in agreement.

Yukino and Lucy looked at each other, because they had no idea what had gotten into the Dragon Slayers at the table. But a monster hunt sounded fine to them.

"When do you want to leave?" Yukino asked Sting.

Lucy looked up and saw Sting look at Yukino and it almost looked like he was blushing when he said, "Well Rogue and I need to go back to the guild and get our things. Let's head out at 10 a.m. because it will take us a while to walk there."

* * *

Once the team had finished eating breakfast, Rogue and Sting went to go get their things while Frosch and Lector hung out with Yukino and Lucy. The girls were washing the dishes and putting them away when they heard Frosch tell Lector, "Frosch thinks Rogue likes Lucy."

Yukino and Lucy froze at the statement then Lector asked his friend, "Why do you think that?"

"Frosch kept hearing Rogue say Lucy's name in the night. He was sad when she went to her room," Frosch said happily and totally oblivious to the fact that Yukino and Lucy were looking at him with their mouths hanging open.

Lector didn't realize the girls were listening either when he said, "Now that you mention it, Sting kept saying Yukino's name in his sleep. Maybe Sting likes Yukino too. He kept saying bacon too and I know he loves bacon."

"Frosch wants Rogue to marry Lucy, so Frosch can have a mom," the little green Exceed said sadly.

"That would be really nice," Lector said to his friend and patted Frosch's back to comfort him, "I wish Yukino was my mom too."

Lucy and Yukino were practically puddles on the floor when the guys came back to get them, whereas the Exceeds were excited beyond belief that their new team was going on its first mission.

* * *

It was late in the afternoon when the team finally reached the swamp lands where the monsters were breeding. To say that the trip continued to be awkward was an understatement. Lucy and Yukino had no idea what was up with their Dragon Slayer partners, but the guys were both getting easily agitated over small things and then any time Sting or Rogue would look at Yukino or Lucy, the girls' heads practically exploded from embarrassment.

Finally Sting said, "Yukino, you and Lector will come with me and we will take the half down that way. Rogue, Blondie and Frosch, you guys got the rest." Then Sting grabbed Yukino's hand and before the girls could object to the plan, they separated.

"Let's go," Rogue said bluntly and Lucy couldn't help but narrow her eyes at the man.

They quietly tracked their way through the swamplands and Lucy carried Frosch so that he wouldn't get his suit dirty. Lucy felt slightly inadequate following behind Rogue, they had been getting along so well so she must have done something to upset him. He had clearly been agitated since breakfast and on the trip. Something was up with him and Sting, but Lucy had no idea at what it could be. She looked at his back and whispered, because she knew he would hear her, "R-Rogue, I'm not sure what's wrong but I'm really sorry."

Lucy tried not to cry, she felt stupid for trying to fight back her tears. This was their first mission as a new team and Rogue was already slipping away. She felt stupid for believing that she wouldn't lose this team too. She knew that being attracted to a teammate was dangerous, plus hearing Frosch fantasize about her and Rogue getting married didn't help. She had lost so much lately that her heart couldn't take any more loss right now. She felt too close to falling into a darkness that she might never escape from.

Rogue stopped dead in his tracks at Lucy's comment and he felt like an ass when he could hear her erratic heartbeat and smell salt from tears. But before he could say anything, Frosch let out a terrifying scream as a swamp monster ripped through the trees and headed straight for them.

Lucy acted quickly and called out Sagittarius and Taurus. Rogue saw that three more giant swamp monsters were heading their way and he could hear Sting roar in the far distance.

"Frosch, stay with Lucy!" Rogue yelled as he headed towards the other three monsters while Lucy and her spirits battled the other one.

Lucy kept her mind focused on the battle while Frosch sat on top of her shoulders. Taurus and Sagittarius made quick work out of the monster, then just as Lucy was about to turn to help Rogue she felt the ground below her start to shake.

Frosch stated whimpering and then Lucy heard Taurus yell, "Lucy-san, Mooove!"

Lucy jumped back just as a monster jumped out of the ground before her and roared in agony as it took out Taurus and Sagittarius. Lucy's eyes widened in fear because the monster was at least ten times larger than the rest. She realized that this was the Mother of the swamp monsters and Lucy had just killed her baby.

Lucy grabbed ahold of Frosch tightly and ran away from the beast, but its massive claws swiped at her and slashed her back. She lost her footing in the swampy waters and when the monster dove for her, Lucy reached for her keys and started to yell, "Gate of the Water Bear-..."

Cold fear washed over her when she realized that she didn't have Aquarius to save her this time. She was always used to Aquarius showing up to wash everyone away, including herself, to save her. But it was too late, Lucy faintly heard Rogue yell her name as Frosch cried and latched onto her, then the monster swallowed them.

* * *

Lucy wanted to vomit at the acidic smell around them as she and Frosch slid down a smelly stinky tube. The monster's bellows were deafening and Lucy thought she could hear more roaring outside just as Lucy and Frosch were tossed about inside of the monster.

Then Lucy felt strong arms around her and looked up to see Virgo holding onto them. "Hime-sama, the Celestial King said that you can use our powers like you did with Aquarius. It's called Star Dress. Hold my key to your chest."

"Will I lose you though?!" Lucy asked in a panic as Frosch climbed on her head.

Virgo shook her head no and said, "The King is giving you this secret magic because of your sacrifice. You will not lose any of us, but you won't be able to hold my form for long at first. Not until you get stronger with this new form. You can use any of your golden keys like this. You have to hurry though or the insides of this monster will crush you and Frosch-sama."

Lucy figured she could find out the details later, because she had no intention of dying in the pit of some monster's stomach. Lucy did as Virgo instructed and it looked like Lucy requipped into a maid outfit, like Virgo, but Lucy felt something else too. She suddenly felt a surge of magical energy. She looked at Virgo and finally understood, then smiled and said, "Frosch, hang on!"

Even though Virgo used Earth Magic to dig holes, Lucy felt like it was basically the same concept as she looked at the insides of the beast. She held onto Frosch and groaned, "This is going to be so disgusting."

Frosch realized what Lucy was about to do and agreed, "Frosch thinks so too."

* * *

Rogue watched in horror as the Mother Monster appeared in front of Lucy and Frosch. He yelled, because he couldn't get to them in time and he realized how foolish he had been for separating from them and how stupid he had acted all morning. His heart ached when he heard Lucy try to call for Aquarius then realized her mistake.

He screamed her name when he smelled cold fear wash over her, but he was too late as the monster swallowed both Lucy and Frosch. Rogue felt fear and anger engulf him as he went into Shadow Drive and slew the other monsters before him and finally drew the Mother Monster's attention.

Rogue charged at the Mother Monster and yelled, "Shadow Dragon's Roar!"

He felt rage as he fought the huge monster as it screamed and slashed at him. He would rip the monster to shreds to get Lucy and Frosch back as he cried out another attack.

Suddenly, the monster froze before him. It started screaming in pain and fell on its side. Rogue was about to take advantage of the monster's weakness when he heard an unusual sound coming from inside the monster.

"Lucy?" Rogue murmured and then his eyes widened when he saw the monster's stomach expand then explode around him. Huge chunks of flesh fell into the swamp and Lucy, who was dressed like a maid, and Frosch flew out of the monster's stomach covered in bile.

Rogue stood in amazement as Lucy and Frosch crawled away from the beast. He was just about to call out to them when Lucy and Frosch both puked into the swamp. He couldn't help but smile at them when they both started crying, because both seemed to equally hate throwing up, and Lucy held onto the little Exceed. Rogue couldn't blame them for puking because they were covered in slime, blood, and swamp juice.

Lucy's maid outfit vanished and Rogue saw that she was back in her regular clothes except now there was a huge bloody gash across her back. Rogue ran over to get her, before she passed out from exhaustion and the wound, and asked with his voice full of concern, "Lucy! Frosch! Are you guys ok?"

The two looked at him with tears in their eyes and cried out in unison, "Yes." Rogue gently smiled at them then put Frosch on his shoulders before he lifted Lucy out of the swamp water.

"No, I can walk," Lucy tried to argue even though her body was clearly fatigued.

Frosch was already asleep on his shoulder and he looked down at Lucy who had blush on her face, but she also looked pretty annoyed at him. "Please let me help you," Rogue asked gently.

Lucy was delirious from exhaustion and she loved being in his arms, so she didn't argue for long. As Rogue carried her he asked with a slight chuckle, "Were you in a maid costume when you escaped?"

Lucy laughed a little too and replied, "Yeah, Virgo showed me a new magic so Frosch and I could escape. I took on part of her aspect and was able to "dig" my way out."

Rogue nodded in understanding. He kept his mouth shut, but in his mind he couldn't help but think at how sexy Lucy had looked as she fought her way out of the beast in a scandalous looking outfit. Well, not really any more scandalous than her normal clothes. Even though he and Sting had chosen this mission specifically designed to get out their sexual frustration, it didn't help much when all Rogue could think about was how amazing and incredible Lucy was and how beautiful she looked. He almost wished he could always carry her everywhere, just so she could be this close to him. Even though she smelled like the inside of a monster, he could still smell faint traces of mint and lavender. He hated the fact that she joined Sabertooth because of everything she had lost; however, he wanted to show her how much she would gain by being his partner.

Instead of saying a hundred different things he wanted to say to her, Rogue chose to say, "Well you were pretty amazing and thank you for saving Frosch. We will meet up with Sting and Yukino then get your wound treated."

"Thanks," Lucy said with a blush. She felt a little happy knowing that she had defeated the huge monster and managed to protect Frosch in the process. However, a dark cloud of depression washed over her and she said, "I messed up though. I am so used to Aquarius being there for me that I nearly got myself and Frosch hurt."

Rogue could see the sadness and resentment in Lucy's eyes before he said, "Don't blame yourself. It was an honest mistake. Aquarius was a form of your magic. It would be no different if I suddenly lost my Dragon's Roar. I would probably still try to use it too because that is what I have used for years. Do not beat yourself up about it. You saved Frosch and defeated the monster by adapting. You will continue to adapt."

Lucy smiled faintly at Rogue for his encouragement. But before she could say anything else, they suddenly heard Yukino yell, "Sting! I am more than capable of walking on my own."

Rogue and Lucy looked at each other and smiled since it seemed once again the Dragon Slayers were carrying their Celestial Mages. Then Sting carried Yukino out of the swamp, but they didn't look as happy as Rogue and Lucy did.

Poor Lector had a huge bump on his head and Yukino had a large gash on her leg, whereas Sting's blonde hair didn't look very blonde anymore because he was covered in swamp muck.

Yukino continued to glare at Sting and Lucy couldn't help but let out a faint giggle before she asked, "Yukino, what happened?"

Sting and Yukino looked over and saw that Rogue was carrying Lucy too. The Two Dragon Slayers started walking next to each other and made their way out of the swamp when Yukino said, "Our  _fearless_  Guild Master tried to fight all of the monsters on his own and all he would say was that he needed to because he was "frustrated.""

Rogue just smirked and Lucy tried not to laugh when Sting said, "If you would have listened then I wouldn't have accidently tripped you."

"And if you would have listened to me then you wouldn't have tripped me and a tree branch wouldn't have hit Lector," Yukino huffed out.

Sting just sighed, because he knew Yukino was right…he just didn't want to admit it. Then Yukino declared, "Lucy and I are picking the next mission! Bakas!"

"Yeah, yeah," Sting murmured, but then couldn't help but smile down at Yukino who was still glaring at him.

* * *

Once the team had made it to a small village, Sting quickly got them rooms, so that they could all bathe and get their wounds cleaned up. Just as they were about to head up to their rooms, Lucy heard a familiar voice say, "Lucy-san?"

Rogue, still holding Lucy, turned around to see Wendy Marvel staring at them with wide eyes.


	5. Chapter 5

"Wendy! What are you doing here?!" Lucy asked happily when she saw her younger friend.

"Um…Carla and I are on a mission with Chelia, Lyon, and Sherry," Wendy said as she looked at the Sabertooth Mages and specifically Rogue who was still holding Lucy in his arms. Then Wendy took in Lucy's and Yukino's wounds and offered, "If you want Lucy-san, I can heal everyone's wounds."

"That would be great Wendy, plus it would be nice to catch up with you," Lucy replied honestly.

Then Lucy told Wendy which room was hers and Yukino's while Wendy went to find Carla and let Chelia know that she was going to visit with Lucy so that her new guild mates wouldn't worry. Rogue and Sting helped the girls into their room, before they all made plans to eat dinner at the inn's restaurant once they had all gotten cleaned up.

Yukino and Lucy gently bathed and cleaned their wounds before Wendy got back. Just as Lucy wrapped a towel around herself she heard a light knock on the door. When she peaked through the hole she saw Wendy waiting and opened it to find the young Dragon Slayer and Carla with her.

"Hey girls! Come on in?" Lucy said with a smile as she stepped aside to open the door for them.

"Lucy did you grow your hair out like Cancer suggested," Carla asked as she pointed to Lucy's wet hair that was up in a messy bun.

"Yes, I did," Lucy replied as she shut the door. It was so good to see her old guild mates again. She had missed the two so much. She had always felt a special bond with Wendy and Carla, because like her, they had joined the guild later and didn't grow up with everyone the way many of their old guild members had.

"She also dyed the ends black. It's really pretty," Yukino added in sweetly as Wendy began to heal Yukino's leg.

"Oh, I can't wait to see it when it's dry," Wendy replied kindly as she focused her energy on healing Yukino.

Once Wendy was done with Yukino, Lucy laid on the bed so Wendy could heal her back. Wendy and Carla looked at each other before Carla asked, "So Lucy, has Scorpio told you how Aquarius is doing?"

Lucy knew her two friends were concerned. They were the only two that had said goodbye to her and Carla had seen a vision of Aquarius's key being broken. The young Slayer and the Exceed cried at the severed connection to Aquarius, because they really loved Lucy and her spirits and hated that Lucy would not be able to see her beloved friend that reminded her of her late mother the most.

"He said she's doing well. She tries to say that she's happy that it happened, but that's just to try and make it easier on us. However, they said that she is really happy for me that I joined Sabertooth to be with Yukino," Lucy replied with a smile.

"So how is Sabertooth?" Wendy asked as she pointed to Lucy's new guild mark.

"It's really great, because I'm on a team with Yukino, Rogue, Sting, Lector, and Frosch," Lucy laughed but then asked as she looked at her right hand, "Did your guys' Fairy Tail mark disappear?"

Wendy and Carla looked at each other in surprise before Carla replied, "Ours disappeared before we left Magnolia."

Lucy's brow furrowed together in thought. She supposed she'd have to do wait on Grandpa Crux to get back with her so that she could know more about why hers remained.

But then Lucy's thoughts were interrupted when Wendy asked, "Lucy-san, have you heard anything from Erza-san or the others?"

"Nothing," Lucy whispered out sadly.

Yukino could see that the three former Fairy Tail mages were getting very sad. She remembered when Lucy first came to Sabertooth that Lucy had told her how Wendy and Carla had been devastated too by the disbandment of Fairy Tail, because the two had already lost the first guild that they had been in—Cait Shelter. Even though Lucy, Wendy, and Carla were no longer in the same guild, Yukino could see their strong bond towards each other.

Once Wendy had finished healing Lucy, Lucy asked the girls, "Would you guys want to join us for dinner? Your new guild mates are welcome too. It would be nice to catch up with Sherry and Lyon."

The two looked at each other with a smile and Wendy replied, "That'd be a lot of fun. Ren is supposed to meet Sherry here so we could all eat together with your new team and mine."

Lucy smiled at her longtime friends then hugged them both as they all tried not to cry. Yukino fought back her own tears as she watched the interaction. Then finally Wendy and Carla went to find their guild mates while Yukino called Sting and told him the plan before the two girls finished getting ready.

Then Lucy said with a genuine smile, "I don't know about you Yukino, but I kind of feel like dressing up."

"Me too," Yukino laughed before she added, "I feel like we deserve it after that terrible mission the guys dragged us on, but I didn't pack anything fancy."

Lucy held up Virgo's key with a mischievous grin and replied, "Leave that to me."

* * *

Rogue, Sting, Frosch, and Lector were waiting for the girls down the hall. Rogue was glad that Lucy was able to catch up with her old guild mates. She had gotten so sad on the mission, but came out victorious because she was really strong. He hoped that seeing Wendy and Carla would help her, but he worried that she might get sadder once they left.

Suddenly Rogue heard Sting mutter, "Holy fuck this is going to be hell."

Rogue looked at his friend quizzically then looked down the hall where the two Celestial Mages were walking towards them. He could see that the girls were in matching outfits once again, but he only had eyes for Lucy as she wore a skin tight black dress that had thin lace over it. Her golden hair with her black tips was gathered into a side pony tail with curls. The dress showed off all of her beautiful curves and her smooth ivory legs that his hands were itching to touch. Her chocolate brown eyes looked at him and if he could have kissed her right then he would have because she was the most breathtaking woman he has ever seen.

He blacked out what Sting was saying to Yukino as his eyes remained on Lucy. He could hear her heart beating erratically as he whispered to her, "You look beautiful."

A thick blush appeared on her face before she replied, "T-thanks."

The six walked down the stairs together and were greeted by Wendy and Carla. Lector nearly fainted from Carla's beauty and Frosch adored Wendy. It wasn't long until the other members of Lamia Scale showed up, shortly followed by the Trimens from Blue Pegasus. Rogue watched as Lucy talked with both Sherry and Lyon happily and he was glad that he could see genuine happiness in Lucy's eyes. Rogue was relieved that they all had already been sitting, because Hibiki and Eve had made it abundantly clear from the get-go that they were interested in Lucy and Yukino. However he and Sting had already made sure that they were sitting on the other sides of Yukino and Lucy to fight the horny men off.

Rogue wanted to growl when Hibiki spoke up and said, "Lucy, it's a shame you didn't join Blue Pegasus, we would have made quite the sexy team."

Sting looked rather annoyed too when Eve added, "Yukino could have joined too. Her beauty would look amazing wrapped up in my snow magic. She's like an angel that fell from the sky to be in my life."

Rogue could sense Sting about to blow when Lucy smiled politely and replied, "I love being a member of Sabertooth with Yukino. Besides Hibiki, shouldn't you and Jenny be on a team since she is your girlfriend?"

Yukino tried not to laugh at Lucy's blunt statement, but then Hibiki added, "A Trimen can never fully be tamed Lucy. We are like wild stallions. We go where beauty calls us."

Sting looked disgusted, but then Lucy added with an almost threatening smile, "All the more reason why I'm glad I joined Sabertooth then. If I had a boyfriend like you Hibiki, I'm not sure Cancer would appreciate the wild Stallion approach. Instead he would prefer a good Gelding. He's very good at cutting things to their proper measurement."

Rogue had to suppress a smile when he smelled shock and fear coming from Hibiki and heard Lucy mutter under her breath, "Fucking playboy."

The rest of the evening went rather smoothly and Hibiki moved his flirting onto Chelia and Eve attempted a pass at Wendy, but both were shut down by Lucy's protectiveness again.

When everyone else was distracted, Rogue asked Lucy, "So how is your back?"

She gave him a breathtaking smile that made Hibiki glare at him before she replied, "It's good. Wendy got me all taken care of."

"I was glad to help," Wendy chimed in with a loving smile towards her old teammate before she added, "And Yukino was right! Lucy-san, the black color in your hair looks amazing with your blonde hair."

Carla nodded in agreement before the Exceed said, "Your team is very matching with with the opposite light and dark colors. Virgo probably likes that a lot."

Chelia added, "It's lovely! Two Celestial Mages with Two Dragon Slayers and their Exceeds! It's so romantic!"

Yukino and Lucy both blushed and Rogue met Lucy's gaze once more. He'd be patient for her, because she was worth it. She had lost so much and he enjoyed watching her catch up with Wendy and Carla. He didn't mind if it would take years, he just wanted to prove to Lucy that he'd always be there for her. She wouldn't lose him and he would protect her heart.

* * *

**Late September...**

It had been a few weeks since Lucy had seen Wendy and Carla. However, Lucy spoke to them every week to check up on them because she felt like it was almost her big sister duty. Not long after they had returned to Sabertooth, Loke came out to talk about her new abilities. Apparently Virgo was trying to show Lucy that she had the power to save everyone which is why Virgo chose to teach Lucy the new technique in the pit of the monster's stomach instead of them telling her beforehand. Lucy wanted to be annoyed but then when Loke told her that lately they could sense Lucy's fear of losing more people, so they had planned it so that they could show her that she had the strength inside of her all along and together they would find a way so that Aquarius and Lucy could be together once more.

After their first mission as a team, Lucy started to train with Minerva so she could learn her new abilities. Yukino would help or watch too, but she admitted that she was thankful that she did not have the same abilities, especially if it meant she'd have to sacrifice a key to obtain it. Lucy had been worried at first that Yukino would resent her for it, but Yukino wasn't like that. Instead the girls grew closer to each other as they got stronger together.

One afternoon, the girls were studying in the library to see if they could track down more keys with Rufus when Crux popped out.

"Grandpa Crux! Did you find anything?" Lucy asked in desperation.

"There is nothing in any book I have found that says a spirit can't be joint contracted. I've been thinking though about your mother and when her health was failing her keys still belonged to her, but the servants she entrusted could have summoned them if they wished. It was like her contract had encompassed more than just herself. My suggestion is that when you find a new key, you and Yukino-sama recite the lines together of obtaining a new key in unison; however, instead of saying 'I am linked' say 'we are linked.'"

"So instead of using singular pronouns use plural?" Yukino asked for clarification.

"Precisely my young friends," Crux said before he fell asleep.

"It's worth a shot!" Lucy stated optimistically, "Now we just need to track down a key."

"I think I can help with that," Rufus added in as he showed the girls a book, "There are apparently rumors of two keys in a hidden cave on Mt. Hakobe."

Lucy groaned because she had been all over those damn mountains too many times, but then Yukino asked, "What do you mean hidden?"

"The cave only shows itself in the first day of the seasons change," Rufus read from the book.

"You mean like the first day of fall or winter?" Lucy asked as she jumped up from her seat.

"It appears so," Rufus replied as he scanned the book for more details.

The girls looked at each other then Yukino said excitedly, "Lucy, let's go get the guys! We have to hurry because the beginning of fall is in two days!"

"I'll write down the details for you both while you get Sting and Rogue and grab your things. It'll be ready before you leave," Rufus stated as the girls kissed his cheek and ran to grab their teammates.

* * *

The team had swiftly made their way to Mt. Hakobe. Lucy had been surprised at how quickly both men were ready to go and didn't even complain when they took the train. However, Lucy has surprised them by summing out Gemini who turned into Wendy so that she could cast Troia on them. When they had seen Wendy a few weeks ago, Lucy had asked her young friend if it would be ok if Gemini copied her. Wendy didn't mind at all; instead she was glad to so that Lucy could heal herself if she ever needed.

Once they had reached the mountain, Virgo helped the guys set up a special tent that would help protect the girls from the windy and snowy mountain top. They found a place to camp that would be near the revealed cave that Rufus had pinpointed. Apparently, they had to be ready by sunrise to see the entrance and if they missed it then they'd have to come back on the first day of winter. Lucy groaned, while she held onto Frosch who was wearing a small frog coat that Aries had made him, because the mountain was freezing and it sure as hell didn't feel like it was about to be fall.

The moment the tent was ready, the girls ran inside with the Exceeds because all of their teeth were chattering. Yukino looked at Lucy and tried to say, "I-I-I'm-m s-s-so c-c-c-cold."

Lucy could barely nod back because her body felt so numb. Then Lector chattered, "I-I'm h-hungry."

Rogue and Sting entered the tent carrying several thermoses and zipped up the tent to keep the cold out. Lucy smiled because the wind immediately stopped in the tent and Aries must have used her wool to keep everything inside nice and warm.

She smiled when Rogue handed her and Frosch a thermos of soup that Virgo had made for all of them. The tent wasn't overly large, but it was big enough that they could all lounge comfortably as they enjoyed their dinner.

Finally Sting asked the girls, "So which keys are we hunting down?"

"Monoceros and Pegasus," Yukino said with a bright smile towards Sting, making the young Master blush a little.

"What are they like?" Lector asked as he finished his cup of soup.

"Monoceros is a unicorn and Pegasus is a flying horse," Lucy added in, "Their keys have been lost for centuries."

"So cool!" Lector yelled excitedly.

"Frosch thinks so too," Frosh agreed as he held out his cup to Lucy for more soup.

The team ate their soup together and Yukino explained to the guys how they were going to attempt a joint contract. Sting and Rogue looked at each other as Sting got a grin on his face before he reached into his bag and pulled out a small wrapped box. Sting handed the box to Yukino and said, "This is a present for you and Lucy from me and Rogue."

The girls looked at each other in surprise before they looked at the two Dragon Slayers. Sting's grin was still plastered on his face and Rogue smiled warmly at Lucy. Yukino slowly opened it then her eyes widened when she pulled out a beautiful silver ring with an intricate latch.

Then Sting said, "We know you've both been researching keys together and Rufus told us about the joint contracts, so we decided to get you both this new ring to keep the keys you find together on."

Lucy smiled softly as Yukino lunged for Sting and wrapped her arms around his neck and whispered, "Thank you."

"Anything for you Yukino," Sting replied warmly as his blue eyes gazed into hers.

Lucy suddenly felt like the tent was too small, but she whispered to Rogue happily, "Thank you for the present."

The Shadow Dragon Slayer looked at her and replied kindly, "You're very welcome."

Yukino and Sting finally realized their intimate position and then quickly moved back to normal before Yukino handed the present to Lucy and asked, "Lucy, will you hold onto it for now since you have a belt and I don't have one yet?"

Lucy nodded her head as she looked down at her belt and felt a pang of sadness. Her belt had been a gift from her Father, but it had the Fairy Tail insignia on it. She supposed she could get a new one made, but she didn't want to. This gift had been one of the truest gifts her father had ever given her and she wouldn't part with it no matter what guild she was in.

She vaguely heard Sting ask Yukino if she'd like one with Sabertooth's insignia on it when Rogue asked, "Where did you get your belt from?"

Lucy looked at him and could tell that he had sensed her sadness again before she replied, "My Father got it for me when we were frozen on Tenroujima. He never gave up hope that I was still alive, but he died a few months before we finally returned. It's one of the few things that I have from him that shows me that he became the man that my Mama fell in love with again before he died."

Rogue and Lucy's eyes met and Rogue said, "He gave you a great gift. I wish I had something like that from Skiadrum."

Lucy could feel that there was some sort of unspoken understanding between them that even though she was a Sabertooth Mage now, she couldn't part with the gift from her father. She somehow knew that it was ok to feel that way too. Her new team knew what it was like to lose family members and for the first time in a great while...she felt truly accepted.

* * *

The next morning arrived and the team drank some hot tea and broth that Virgo brought them as Sting and Rogue waited outside for the cave to appear. They insisted the girls wait in the tent because the cold didn't bother them. Then finally Sting yelled, "There it is!"

Rogue quickly used his shadow form to reach the cave as fast as possible so they wouldn't lose it. The girls climbed out of the tent with Lector and Frosch as they followed Sting to Rogue's location. The girls and the Exceeds were already shivering again from the cold by the time they had reached the cave, but Lucy and Yukino grabbed their flashlights and quickly darted ahead of the guys because they couldn't contain their excitement.

* * *

After walking far back into the cave, they began to see a glow of light up ahead. "Lucy look!" Yukino said in excitement.

"Let's be careful," Sting added in as the guys caught up, "Rufus said that there may be traps, but he wasn't certain."

The girls agreed to let the guys go first when they offered as Yukino summoned out Libra to slow down any objects that might come flying at them. When they approached the altar, the two Dragon Slayers inspected everything and Lucy couldn't help but smile at how careful Rogue and Sting were about everything.

Finally Sting said, "I don't think there are traps so you two should be good to go."

Rogue nodded in agreement as Lucy and Yukino got huge smiles on their faces and ran up to look at the two keys. Yukino and Lucy both thanked Libra before the Spirit excused herself and went back to the Celestial Realm.

"Which should we try first?" Lucy asked her friend.

"How about Pegasus!" Yukino stated happily.

They asked Sting to place the first key on the ground in-between them. They didn't want to take any chances that there was some weird loophole that whoever touched it became the owner. The girls linked hands and closed their eyes as they started to chant: "We are linked to the path of Celestial Spirits, now! O Spirit, answer our call and pass through the gate! Gate of Pegasus, we open thee!"

The girls opened their eyes as the key began to glow. The Dragon Slayers and Exceeds stood back as a pure white light filled the room and Pegasus stood before them.

Pegasus was all white, except his mane and tale shined a silvery color. The Spirit looked at both girls as he spread his enormous wings and said in his deep, majestic voice, "This is a nice change of pace. Having two female masters instead of a male."

Lucy and Yukino looked at each other and Yukino asked, "You can feel us both?"

"It seems so. I feel equally bound to you both," Pegasus replied as he shook his mane, "will you do the same for my friend?"

The girls both nodded and Rogue grabbed Monoceros's key and placed it between the girls while everyone, including Pegasus, watched in amazement. Lucy and Yukino recited the incantation one more time and watched in awe as Monoceros emerged before them. He looked similar to Pegasus except he was pure black and his prominent horn protruded from his head.

"He has wings too," Sting pointed out.

Monoceros looked at the young master pointedly and asked in a dark voice, "Is there something wrong with a unicorn having wings?"

"No sir!" Sting answered quickly not wanting to offend the new spirit, thus making the girls giggle and a head shake from Rogue.

However, Lucy felt a sudden sadness as she recalled the first time she had summoned out Aquarius. So much had changed since then. She had lost so much.

Then Monoceros trotted up to her and sniffed her before he said, "You must be Lucy Heartfilia, the girl even Aquarius loves."

Lucy felt like crying as she nodded her head and then Pegasus added, "And you must be Yukino Agria. The Celestial Realm spoke true of the two beloved Celestial Mages that have united their magic."

"It's a nice change," Monoceros nodded his head in agreement, "Especially since our last Master was a freak that hid our keys in this cave."

The girls sweatdropped at Monoceros's bluntness and Sting asked warily, "Why was he a freak?"

"He had a horse fetish. Then when he found out that we were both males and not females, he locked us in here," Pegasus answered as he shook his head.

"That's terrible!" Yukino exclaimed.

"Well at least he didn't mate with us like he had originally wanted to," Monoceros added in grimly.

Lucy reached out her hand towards him and he allowed her to pet his mane before she said, "I'm sorry you were mistreated. Yukino and I promise to love each of you and protect you."

The two horses looked at each other before Monoceros replied, "We thank you and for once we are glad that rumors are true. Both of your hearts are amongst the purest I have ever beheld."

Then the two Celestial Mages and the two horse spirits made a joint contract together. Lucy and Yukino were ecstatic that their plan had worked and hugged each other tightly. Lucy began to feel her heart lift a little as her spirit family grew thanks to Yukino.

Finally Monoceros looked at Rogue, Sting, Frosch, and Lector before he asked the two Dragon Slayers, "What kind of magic do you possess? You smell funny."

"We are Dragon Slayers," Rogue said in a respective tone to their new friends as he pointed to himself and Sting. Then he pointed to Frosch and Lector and said, "They are Exceeds and they can fly as well."

"That's very useful. Dragons are good at protecting princesses," Pegasus added with a kind tone.

"Bah!" Monoceros neighed out, "Look at Draco. He's an arrogant asshole. Lucy and Yunino don't need silly little dragons to protect them."

Lucy wanted to laugh at Monoceros's harshness because it so easily angered Sting, but then Rogue added, "We do not presume to be worthy of the girls, but we would give our lives to keep them safe."

Monoceros studied Rogue for a moment. The temperamental unicorn could feel the emotions of his new masters. Clearly the two girls were drawn to the men and he noticed how Lucy in-particular watched the dark haired man after his declaration. The young girl's heart was full of pain, but the Dragon Slayer that wore dark clothes seemed to be able to lessen the pain for her.

Then the unicorn spirit said to Rogue, "I'll approve of you to ride on me with Lucy or Yukino."

"What about me?" Sting asked in annoyance.

"No," Monoceros stated flatly, "Not unless Yukino or Lucy ask."

"You may ride on me," Pegasus told Sting kindly, thus making the Sabertooth Master feel better.

Lucy and Yukino looked at each other before Lucy asked, "So would we be able to ride on you guys down this stupidly cold mountain?"

Pegasus answered happily, "It would be our pleasure."

"We have not flown in Earthland in a long time," Monoceros added in an eager voice.

Lucy, Rogue, and Frosch mounted Monoceros while Yukino, Sting, and Lector mounted Pegasus. Once they left the cave and gathered the things from their campsite, Monoceros and Pegasus looked at one another before they told their newly beloved masters, "Hang on."

Lucy watched in awe and smiled as the cold wind hit her face as Monoceros ran through the snow towards the edge of the mountain. She held onto Frosch as Rogue's arms wrapped around her waist.

Monoceros's blackened wings curled back as he and Pegasus dove simultaneously off of the mountain. She could hear Frosch laugh happily as her ears popped from the pressure then she screamed with Frosch in happiness when Monoceros's wings spread wide and they soared together as a team over Fiore and back to Sabertooth towards their home—completely unaware of the danger that they would soon face.


	6. Chapter 6

**October**

Rufus walked into Sting's office late one night with some papers as the young guild master signed the areas that Rufus had put sticky notes next to. The Memory Make Mage cleared his throat and said, "Sting, I've found some of the whereabouts of the Fairy Tail Mages that you had requested when Lucy first joined."

Sting put his head in his hands because he was getting a headache from all the paperwork. He wanted to hear what Rufus had to say though, because he and Lucy were becoming pretty close in a sibling sort of way so he felt pretty protective of her. He was falling pretty hard for Yukino and had cooled it with hitting on other women to show her that he could be serious. He knew that Yukino loved having Lucy in the guild and so did everyone else in Sabertooth. Everyone raved about her kindness. Plus he could see how hard his best friend was falling for the girl and Rogue never showed interest in actually liking a girl that way before. Only one night stands. He knew his friend had never slept next to a girl, yet the night of Lucy's welcome to Sabertooth party...Rogue had stayed with her the whole night because of her nightmares. Sting would do whatever he could to make sure that Lucy was happy at Sabertooth with all of them.

"So what have you found out?" Sting asked.

"Well it seems that Gajeel, Levy, and Panther Lily are a part of the magic council, the Strausses are training but were spotted near Balsam Village last week, Laxus and the Raijinshu often work with Blue Pegasus, and Cana Alberona is often found with Bacchus from Quatro Cerebus," Rufus reported as he sat the paperwork down on Sting's desk.

"What about Lucy's old team?" Sting asked as he looked at the pictures and documents that Rufus had put down.

"Nothing. No one knows anything about them," Rufus replied grimly.

Sting let out a heavy sigh before he said, "Please keep looking. I want to be prepared if Natsu suddenly decides to pop back up."

"Of course," Rufus replied in understanding.

Everyone in Sabertooth could see how deep a bond the new team already had, but fear was in the back of all their minds that if Fairy Tail were to reunite then Lucy would leave.

* * *

**Last week of October…**

"Sting, you're stepping on my foot," Lucy hissed at her guild master.

"Sorry!" Sting whispered back as the team hid in the bushes outside of a bandit guild's den.

Lector flew down to greet them and reported, "Rufus-kun was right, the leader in there has a Silver Gate key. We have to save it, because he looks like a mean man and he mentioned melting it for its silver because it was worthless. There are only fifteen bandits all together."

A recent job request had come to Sabertooth about a bandit guild that had been targeting rich families in Crocus. Rogue eyed the building and could feel Lucy's body brush up against him and out of instinct, he pulled her closer to him.

Lucy welcomed Rogue's protection because it was a chilly and wet fall night. Her body was pumping with adrenaline in preparation of the fight, but seeing how calm Rogue was and breathing in his scent calmed her.

Finally Sting said, "If there are only fifteen of them, we can easily take them."

"Frosch thinks so too," Frosch said in agreement with his guild master.

"You and Rogue each take five and Lucy and I will get the last five and grab the key," Yukino suggested and Rogue and Sting nodded in agreement.

Sting grinned at Rogue and asked, "Rogue, want to scare the hell out of them like old times?"

"Sure," Rogue replied in his monotone voice, but with a slight smirk on his face.

Rogue gave Lucy's hand a gentle squeeze before he turned into his shadow form. Lucy watched in amazement as the doors to the bandit's building flew open because of Rogue's magic. Lucy laughed to herself before she whispered to Yukino, "It's very Halloween-esk."

Yukino nodded in agreement with a giggle before Sting said, "You guys might want to cover your eyes." Then the young guild master dashed towards the building and yelled, "Holy Ray!"

Lucy could still feel the blinding effects that Sting's magic had on the bandits as Yukino summoned out Libra and Lucy summoned out Loke. The girls followed Sting into the den and Lucy saw that the leader of the criminals was already trying to escape as Rogue knocked out several of the men with his Shadow Dragon's roar.

"There he is!" Lucy pointed to Yukino.

Libra was fast and casted Gravity Change on the leader, thus making him crash to the ground and dropping the silver key. The girls were just about to grab it when a man with plant magic grabbed Yukino with his vines. Yukino screamed out in pain as thorns pierced her flesh and the vines snapped at Lector and Frosch who had tried to help their friend.

Lucy heard Sting yell Yukino's name, but Lucy yelled, "Open the Gate of the Giant Crab, Cancer!"

Before the man knew what was happening, Cancer had snipped the vines and Lucy had transformed into her Star Dress of Cancer and cut the man down. Lucy turned to Yukino, Frosch, and Lector and asked, "Are you guys ok?"

Yukino nodded then turned her anger on a man that was about to hit Lucy from behind. "Yeah I'm good, it just stings a little. You should grab the key while I deal with this asshole."

Lucy nodded at her friend then heard Yukino summon out Pisces as the man screamed in fear. Just as Lucy reached down and touched the key, a dark light burst from it and shot her back against the wall and she heard Rogue yell her name before everything went dark.

* * *

Lucy's eyes opened and her head was pounding like crazy. She looked around and gasped before she cried out, "Yukino?! Rogue?!"

No one was with her while she was in a dark room with fog everywhere. Suddenly a crow flew down and landed on her knee. She dared not move as it studied her and she somehow knew that it would not hurt her.

Then in her mind, she heard the crow's voice say, "On the night when the veil is thinnest, someone from your past and a possible future will appear once more. He will try to change fate before the world will go back to the way it was before."

Someone from her past? She looked at the bird and asked in a whisper, "Do you mean Natsu?"

The crow squawked and replied, "The man that will come is your fallen soulmate."

"But I don't know who that is!" Lucy argued as the crow vanished before her.

Her eyes grew heavy as she heard the crow's voice echo in her mind once more, "When the veil is thinnest."

* * *

Virgo had come out to tie up the men with Libra as Yukino dashed over to Lucy where Loke was holding her and yelled, "Is Lucy all right?!"

Lucy was unconscious with the silver key in front of her. Yukino had seen how it had shot out its magic as it touched her and then her eyes widened in realization. The key on the ground belonged to Corvus, The Crow. Legends had that when Corvus found a Master, he would reveal an imminent threat that loomed over his new owner.

"Is she ok?!" Rogue asked in a panic as he kneeled down next to Lucy and Yukino.

Loke and Yukino looked at each other as Sting walked up before Loke replied, "She will be fine, but right now Corvus has her."

"Who the hell is Corvus?" Sting demanded to know.

"The Celestial Spirit that belongs to that key," Yukino answered as she pointed to it, "It is said to be a harbinger of bad news. Can you put it in your pocket, Sting? I dare not touch it until Lucy is awake. It won't affect you because you are not a Celestial Mage."

Sting nodded and grabbed the key, then Lucy shot up with a gasp—shocking everyone. Loke let go of her as he asked, "Lucy, are you ok?"

Lucy looked at her worried friends before Yukino stated, "It's Corvus's key."

Lucy's eyes widened in realization before she said, "He told me someone was coming."

Rogue's brows furrowed together in worry when Yukino looked troubled and because he could smell Lucy's fear. He watched silently as Lucy added, "I don't know who he meant. Just that the man is coming on the night when the veil is thinnest."

"We should research it with Rufus tomorrow when we make a contract with Corvus. If the legends are right, Corvus doesn't even know entirely because he only catches glimpses of the future," Yukino replied as Rogue helped Lucy up to her feet and he wrapped his arm around her waist.

Lucy only nodded because her head still felt foggy and her body felt like she had been hit with a ton of bricks. Yukino gave her hand a quick squeeze as their other spirits went back and Monoceros came out to carry Lucy, Rogue, and Frosch back while Yukino, Sting, and Lector waited for the Rune Knights that would be there shortly.

Lucy winced when Rogue helped her up onto Monoceros. Frosch climbed up the Unicorn Spirit and hugged his neck gently, because the two had become fast friends. Rogue thanked Monoceros before he too climbed up behind Lucy.

* * *

Once they were on, Monoceros headed out and soared towards Lucy's and Yukino's home. Rogue pulled Lucy close to his chest while he held onto her. He could feel her shaking from fear and he looked down at her and asked, "Do you want to talk about it?"

Her brown eyes looked at him with worry before she replied, "You might get mad."

He studied her for a second and could smell her anxiety grow. He held her protectively and said in a gentle tone, "I promise I won't be mad at you."

He could see that she wasn't entirely convinced, but he knew that she wanted to be honest with him and he heard her say, "Corvus said the man that was coming was my fallen soulmate."

Rogue felt a pang in his chest, then felt even worse when he saw tears fall from Lucy's eyes. He looked at her and said, "I'm not mad at you. We aren't a 100% sure what the vision means yet, but why does it bother you about the soulmate thing? You decide your own destiny, Lucy."

He watched as Lucy bit her lip nervously and his own heart felt it was about to pound out of his chest when Lucy answered his question, "It bothers me because you are the one that makes my heart feel alive again."

He wanted to kiss her so bad and to tell her that she made his heart come alive too, which wasn't easy to do when he was always surrounded by a darkness. They needed to take things slow though until Lucy was ready so he replied, "I'll always be there for you. No matter what happens."

He felt like Lucy had more that she wanted to say, but she remained quiet as she leaned her head against his chest and asked, "Will you stay with us tonight? I feel freaked out."

He could smell her fear again as she trembled in his arms and answered, "Of course. I'll stay with you as long as you want."

He felt her relax more as Monoceros soared through the night sky.

* * *

Lucy removed her dirty clothes in Yukino's bathroom while Rogue and Frosch used hers. Even though Gemini-Wendy had healed her, for some reason her mind and body still ached. She quickly showered before she put on a t-shirt and cotton black shorts.

When she walked out to the living room, Yukino, Sting, and Lector had finally arrived. "How'd it go?" Lucy asked as she towel dried her hair.

Yukino and Sting looked at each other before Yukino replied, "Fine, but umm...Gajeel-san was who came to pick up the criminals."

Lucy blinked a few times and asked, "Gajeel is working for the Magic Council?"

When Yukino nodded, Lucy snorted out a laugh and said, "I guess weirder things have happened. I'd like to see the person that gives him orders though."

"How are you feeling, Lucy?" Yukino asked.

"Better, but still oddly sore," Lucy replied as she summoned out Gemini-Wendy to help with Yukino's wounds.

By the time Rogue and Frosch finished cleaning up, Frosch was in a new frog pajama suit that Virgo had gotten for him and Lucy offered to let Sting and Lector use her bathroom while Yukino got cleaned up in hers. Frosch was exhausted though and immediately fell asleep on a large swivel chair that Lucy had bought for the apartment. The guys were over here so much that Lucy and Yukino decided that they needed more furniture.

Rogue was sitting on the love seat in black athletic shorts and a tight gray t-shirt that showed off his delicious abs. His hair was back in a ponytail, which Lucy loved, and she smiled when she realized that she and Rogue were in matching outfits.

Then he looked at her with his ruby eyes and put his arm on the back of the love seat and patted it to signal to her that she should sit by him. She couldn't help but smile as she walked over to him and put her knees on the couch and faced him. She felt butterflies in her stomach when he wrapped his arm around her and pulled her close in an attempt to soothe her fears.

Lucy wasn't sure what kind of relationship she and Rogue had. She had been a member of Sabertooth for over a month and she had found herself enjoying it a lot, well a lot more than she ever thought possible. She actually started to love her life again. She still missed Aquarius and her friends from Fairy Tail every day, but she knew without a doubt that she loved everyone at Sabertooth just as much as she did the people in her old guild. She felt happy.

When she looked at Rogue she saw someone that she trusted; however, deep down she felt sad because Rogue probably only saw her as a friend. She clearly felt more, but she felt selfish in admitting that to herself. She knew most days that she still struggled with her loss, but she couldn't help but be drawn to the man next to her. But if she told him how she felt and he rejected her, it would mess up their team.

She felt his strong hand under her chin as he lifted her head to meet his gaze and he asked in a worried voice, "Lucy, what's wrong?"

Lucy was just about to say something when Sting and Lector came out of her room and Sting stated, "I think I need a beer."

Lector yawned and went to lay down by Frosch and Lucy laughed as the red Exceed instantly passed out next to his friend. Then Sting asked as he walked towards the kitchen, "You guys want anything?"

"Water is fine," Lucy said with a smile.

"Beer," Rogue stated because he felt tense.

Sting nodded then smiled when Yukino came out of her room in a tank top and shorts. "You want a drink?" Sting asked Yukino.

"Sure, but I'll help you. You are a guest in our home," Yukino laughed.

"Bah, you know we practically live here now too," Sting teased as they disappeared into the kitchen together.

Lucy smiled at Yukino's and Sting's interactions. She had noticed that Sting no longer hit on other girls and he only had eyes for Yukino. Sure Sting still teased her, but it was in a sibling sort of way. Lucy felt like Sting was the brother she never had. Then she let out a content sigh before she said to Rogue, "They are so cute together."

Rogue got a funny smile on his face and Lucy smacked his chest playfully before she asked, "What's so funny?"

He chuckled a little before he replied, "Yukino just said the same thing about us."

Lucy's face heated up and she nearly fell off the couch in shock. Her body felt as though it were on fire as Rogue's gaze pierced her very soul. She swallowed hard when she felt Rogue's face moving towards hers. She looked at his deliciously sinful lips and she wanted to kiss him so bad while she breathily moaned, "Rogue."

She thought she heard him growl sexily and just before she was about to risk everything and kiss him, she heard Sting and Yukino walk back in. Rogue pulled away and Lucy felt like it was suddenly hard to breathe the air. She didn't know why, but she felt like her heart had shattered and she felt humiliated.

She could see that Rogue was looking at her with a worried expression out of her peripherals, but she dared not look at him as she grabbed her water glass from Sting. Then the team watched a show Sting had picked out.

Lucy however felt restless as her mind started to wonder about Corvus's warning. She still couldn't look at anyone as she said suddenly, "I'm really tired. I'm going to go to bed."

"Are you feeling ok, Lucy?" Yukino asked in a worried voice.

Lucy smiled towards Yukino and replied, "I'm fine. Just worn out. I'll see you in the morning." Sting and Yukino wished Lucy a goodnight, but she could still feel Rogue's worried gaze on her as she shut the door to her room and tears began to fall down her face.

Once Lucy's door was shut, Rogue felt anxious because he could hear her faintly crying. He didn't know what was wrong or what was happening then Yukino said, "I'm actually pretty tired too."

"I'll tuck you in!" Sting beamed at her.

Yukino sighed and replied, "I'm a grow woman. I don't need tucked in."

Rogue watched as Sting got a pouty look on his face that made Yukino sigh before she caved, "Fine."

Sting chuckled and followed Yukino to her room. He could hear them talking, but he didn't care what about as he stood up and walked over to Lucy's room. Normally he would knock, but he didn't care when he heard her crying so he opened the door then closed it behind him.

She shot up on the bed and his heart broke when he saw her wipe away the tears on her face and she asked, "Rogue, what are you doing?"

"Tell me what's wrong," Rogue demanded as he came and sat next to Lucy on her bed. Then his eyes widened in shock when he heard Yukino moan out Sting's name. He sighed because he wanted to yell at them  _'Great Timing!'_  but his thoughts turned back to Lucy who was holding her pillow against her chest.

She wouldn't look at him when she whispered, "It's nothing."

Rogue arched his eyebrow at her then asked slightly hurt, "You're lying to me now?"

He felt terrible as Lucy flinched from his words, but then she cried out quietly, "If I tell you...I could lose you."

"Why would you think that?" Rogue ask with worry, but then he heard Sting tell Yukino how beautiful she was. This was all terribly timed and very distracting.

Then Lucy got upset and nearly shouted at him, "All right Rogue Cheney here it is; I think you are probably the sexiest man I have ever seen and tonight all I could think about was how much I wanted to kiss you, then Sting and Yukino walked in. Now our team will break up because it will be awkward between us and I have this doom hanging over my head because of Corvus and this fallen soulmate nonsense!"

Rogue was almost flustered by everything happening at once and then was relieved when he heard that Sting put on soft music in Yukino's room to drown out their voices, but not loud enough to wake Lector and Frosch. Rogue then turned his attention to Lucy and laughed a little when he said, "I already knew that you thought I was sexy."

Her eyes widened in shock and then embarrassment when he clarified, "You told me so the night you got drunk and I carried you home."

"Oh my god," Lucy groaned as she buried her face in her pillow, "Is there anything else I should know about drunk me?"

Rogue whispered in her ear seductively, "You said I was  _your_  Dragon Slayer."

Rogue had to bite back his own groan when he smelled Lucy's arousal. But then she said, "But I feel broken right now. I don't want to burden you."

"Do you want to know what I said to you that night?" Rogue asked as he pulled Lucy towards him.

"Probably, shut the fuck up Lucy—you're drunk," Lucy wailed in agony, but made Rogue laugh in the process. She was too cute.

"I said no such thing," Rogue laughed before he replied seriously, "I said, 'I'll never leave you. You are mine forever, my beautiful Lucy."

He watched as shock hit her face and a lot of overwhelming nerves hit her so he added, "I'm crazy about you, Lucy. I know you need time to heal so we can take it as slow as you want, but I'll still wait for you and remain by your side. I know you are struggling with everything that you have lost right now and that's normal with what you've been through. Just know that I'd never judge you for that or leave you because if it."

"Some people would," Lucy replied honestly.

"Most people are idiots Lucy," Rogue stated honestly before he added, "If someone stops being there for you when times are hard then I believe they weren't really your friend to begin with."

He waited as Lucy thought things over then when she looked at him he said, "Our team will not break up, because every time I see you I think about how much I want to be with you too and I would have kissed you in there, even though I was trying to resist, but then Sting walked in. I'm here to stay, Lucy."

Rogue began to regret putting on athletic shorts as Lucy eyed him hungrily. She kneeled before him and brushed his bangs away from his face as she whispered with a smile, "My Dragon Slayer."

Rogue couldn't take his eyes off of Lucy as she gently bit her lip as her eyes hovered over his own lips. He swallowed hard because his dragon side was taking over when he said to her, "I need you."

Then he crashed his lips down onto hers. He felt her tense for a second in surprise, but then she moaned as she wrapped her arms around his neck and deepened their kiss as her tongue darted in his mouth.

Lucy felt pure bliss as her back fell onto her soft mattress and Rogue ravished her mouth. She was mixed with emotions. The overwhelming one was her desire to be with Rogue as his fingers brushed across her cheek. The second thing she felt was fear because she was taking a risk and opening herself up knowing full well that she might get hurt. The thought of losing Rogue was almost unbearable to her.

But the biggest one that screamed at her was...trust. She knew she trusted Rogue with her life. Their team had already been on several missions and they hung out together every day. She had trusted her old team and now they were nowhere to be found. They were all adults with their own lives, but she had wanted to be there for them. Natsu lost Igneel again, Gray lost his dad again, and Erza had been tortured. They had all suffered and instead of helping each other, the team broke apart. Could she do that again? Could she trust Rogue with her heart?

Then as though he knew what she was thinking, as they shared their first kiss, Rogue pulled away and said in a reassuring tone, "Just like how I am your Dragon Slayer. You are mine forever, Lucy. Soulmates be damned."

Lucy let out a giggle and Rogue laughed at her merriment then she cupped his face and pressed her lips to his again gently, savoring the taste of his spearmint kiss. He kissed her back then said, "We will take it as slow as you want."

She smiled because she felt safe as he rolled over and laid down on the bed next to her. They crawled under the covers together and Rogue lifted his arm so Lucy could rest herself into his chest. Lucy felt safe and warm then she asked suddenly, "Yukino and Sting are having sex aren't they?"

Rogue let out a low chuckle and replied, "Yeah. I guess I owe you lunch don't I?"

"Damn right Rogue Chenney," Lucy smiled up at him. She could tell when he first came in that he was distracted by something and the only thing it could possibly had been were their friends.

Lucy laughed at the memory she had with Rogue. After their first mission the two had made a bet to see when Yukino and Sting would finally get together. Lucy bet that it'd be before Halloween, but Rogue believed it would be after. He still had no idea why he had put so much faith in Sting on being patient.

Then Lucy asked, "What should we bet on next?"

Rogue got a devious smile on his face before he suggested, "How about how long it will take before someone catches them having sex in the guild?"

"But that's not fair! You and Orga have Slayer hearing! You could easily win just by hearing them," Lucy pouted.

"Oh believe me, Orga and I do not want to walk in on that and I promise not to tell anyone to walk in on them," Rogue stated honestly.

Lucy narrowed her eyes at him before she agreed, "Fine. I think they will get caught before Christmas."

"I think it will be by or on the Halloween party this week," Rogue stated.

"This week?!" Lucy yelled in a whispered voice.

"What?" Rogue asked in surprise by Lucy's enthusiasm, "Sting is pretty lecherous. That's not a stretch."

Lucy thought about it and was somewhat intimidated by Rogue's certainty but agreed to it before she asked, "So what do we win this time? It can't be food related because that was our first bet."

"How about the loser has to be the other person's slave for a day?" Rogue asked with a smirk.

"Y-you want me to be your slave?" Lucy asked with a blushed face.

"Well I haven't won yet, but seeing you in that maid outfit on our first mission has been engraved in my mind," Rogue admitted in a husky tone.

Lucy tried to swallow her nerves down. It wasn't for certain that she'd lose and she smirked evilly as she thought about Rogue being her servant for a whole day. "You're on Rogue," Lucy said in determination, but then she looked at him and laughed, "So you liked the maid outfit huh?"

"Perhaps," Rogue said with a blush.

Then Lucy began to laugh in a maniacal tone, before she said, "I can't wait for Halloween."

Rogue wasn't sure why, but he suddenly felt very nervous.

* * *

**The Next Day...**

Lucy awoke in Rogue's arms. He was still sleeping peacefully and she smiled as she thought about last night. She wasn't sure if she could call him her boyfriend because it felt like more than that. Whatever it was, she felt safe knowing that he'd be there. Then Lucy looked down out the end of her bed then nearly jumped out of her own skin when she saw Frosch smiling at them with his aloof gaze.

"Is Lucy Frosch's mom?" the sweet Exceed asked her.

Rogue woke up from the noise and looked at Lucy then back at Frosch. "What did you say buddy?" Rogue asked.

"Is Lucy Frosch's mom?" Frosch asked happily.

Lucy was going to let Rogue handle this one, but Rogue looked like he was dumbstruck by Frosch's question then Frosch added, "Frosch heard Sting tell Lector that Yukino is his mom."

Lucy and Rogue both nearly cried as Frosch's eyes began to fill with tears with worry that Lucy might not be his mom so Lucy said quickly, "Of course I'm your mom, Sweetie."

"Yay!" Frosch cheered as he dove towards Lucy's embrace, "Frosch has never had a mom."

Rogue sat up then placed a gentle kiss on Lucy's cheek before they went and grabbed breakfast together. Their lives were complicated yet simple at the same time while Frosch told them about the blueberry muffins Sting had made for everyone.

* * *

After the team ate breakfast together, Lucy and Yukino decide it was time to summon Corvus. However, Lucy couldn't help but smile as she watched how cute Yukino and Sting were acting. He openly kissed her and it made Lucy want to fangirl as bad as Mira.

The girls sat facing each other in the living room as they linked hands and then Sting placed Corvus's key between them. The recited together the incantation to link the spirit to their world and watched as black smoke appeared and then Corvus perched himself onto their coffee table.

Corvus studied both girls then turned to Lucy and said, "I apologize for frightening you before. It had been many years since a Celestial Mage had touched my key, especially such a powerful one. I actually could feel both of you when you came to take care of that brute and his gang, so I think that is why my magic reacted the way it did."

"Can you feel us both now?" Yukino asked nicely.

"Indeed I can," Corvus nodded his bird head.

Lucy looked the Crow Spirit and asked, "Do you remember what you said to me?"

Corvus studied her again before he replied, "I do; however, I do not know what it means or when it will happen. Sometimes my visions are clearer than others, but this one in particular even has me stumped. When I try to focus on it, it becomes like a fog in my mind. If I gain any new information on it then I will tell you right away; however, it is not good to dwell on what could happen."

Lucy nodded her head before she looked grimly at Rogue who had a worried look on his face. Then the girls made a contract with Corvus and added a new friend to their family.

* * *

**Halloween Day…**

It was early in the morning when Lucy and Yukino ran around Sabertooth's guild with decorations. Orga, Virgo, Aries, and Libra all came out to help their friends decorate for the big party that they were having that night. Lucy, Yukino, and Rufus had tried to research Corvus's warnings, but they had little luck. They weren't sure what the thin veil between the worlds had meant. There were too many possibilities; some thought it was at midnight every night, other's thought Hollow's eve, others thought it was New Year's, and a few theories suggested the summer solstice. Either way, Corvus had not gained any new information so she decided to try and relax and enjoy the party tonight with her guild mates.

Besides the looming threat of a fallen soulmate, Lucy felt pretty confident about everything. So far Lucy was winning the bet with Rogue. She almost felt giddy as she sat on Orga's shoulders to hang up the stringed lights as she thought about making Rogue serve her drinks in the bath and him giving her massages—all while him being shirtless of course.

"So, am I allowed to know what you girls are coming as tonight?" Orga asked as he handed Lucy a new pack of lights.

"It's a surprise!" Yukino laughed as she laid out the black tablecloths with Aries for the catering that they were having delivered later.

"The Princesses want to punish their Dragon Slayers tonight with their sexy outfits," Virgo whispered to Orga, who then boomed out a laugh at the Maid Spirit's bluntness.

"VIRGO!" the girls cried out in embarrassment.

"Punishment?" Virgo turned to them with a mischievous smile.

Lucy shook her head at Virgo. She loved the spirit to death, but Lucy somehow knew that she wouldn't die from monsters or dragons attacking the world. It would be because Virgo finally gave her a heart attack from embarrassment.

"What about you Orga?" Lucy smiled at the Lightning Mage that she had surprisingly gotten very close with. She already had his Christmas present picked out.

"A rock star, obviously," Orga stated with pride.

"Obviously," Lucy and Yukino laughed in unison.

Then they all looked over when they heard Sting yell, "Come on Rogue! We have to match our costumes because Yukino and Lucy probably will!"

"No thanks," Rogue repeated dryly but then smiled when he saw Lucy on top of Orga's shoulders smiling at him.

"Do you even have a costume?!" Sting demanded to know.

"I didn't think it would be that important," Rogue replied honestly.

But then Lucy's eyes widened in horror and shock when Virgo walked up to Rogue and Sting and said, "I had the pleasure of providing you both with costumes this morning."

Then before Rogue could object, Sting yelled, "You're the best Virgo!"

However, Libra got offended and used her gravity magic to slam Sting into the floor. Orga shook his head at the commotion and said to Yukino, "Not sure what you see in him."

"I think it's because Yukino likes to be punished by her Master. Much like how Hime-sama wants to make Rogue her slave," Virgo whispered to Orga.

When the Lightning Mage cracked up, but before he could ask what Virgo had meant by Lucy making Rogue her slave, Lucy and Yukino yelled out in a blushed unison, "Virgo!"

Virgo smiled and asked one more time, "Punishment?"

* * *

Rogue studied his costume in one of the mirrors and then he heard Sting ask, "What the hell am I supposed to be?"

Rogue looked over at Sting and saw that he was almost completely naked with gathered leaves around his genitals and ass. Rogue rolled his eyes because Sting was flexing in the mirror to show off his physique. "I think you are supposed to be the First Man," Rogue said dryly.

"Virgo got me a snake costume!' Lector yelled out as he wore a purple snake suit and was carrying around an apple in his hand.

Frosh however was in his usual frog costume but had a crown on his head like he did during the Grand Magic Games Ball and a little black fur lined coat. Virgo had informed them that they needed to get ready at the guild, because Yukino and Lucy wanted to surprise them with their costumes.

Then Sting looked at him and asked, "What they hell are you supposed to be?"

Rogue was in black tuxedo pants, but instead of a normal tuxedo vest he wore a gentleman's evening dress coat that had a silk belt that tied around his waist. Then he had a large red silk tie that had a fancy broach on it and a red silk pocket square to match. But to top it all off, Virgo had given him fake reading glasses and a pipe. "I think I'm supposed to be a gentleman." Rogue said with uncertainty in his voice.

"You are hardly showing any skin," Sting protested.

"Why does that matter?" Rogue asked curiously.

"I guess it doesn't," Sting shrugged his shoulders then the Dragon Slayers could hear the music start to thump from the guild hall. Then the young Guild Master said, "Well Rogue, let's go get our ladies."

* * *

Rogue sat down at a table with Rufus as he watched Lector and Frosh show everyone their costumes. The decorations that Lucy, Yukino, Orga, and their spirit friends had put up looked amazing. He smiled as he watched Sting greet everyone and he felt really lucky that their guild was such a warm and welcoming place now.

Then Rogue's eyes widened when he saw Lucy and Yukino walk through the guild doors. Several of the men in Sabertooth let out playful cat calls as Sting's mouth hung open in shock. Yukino was wearing gathered leaves like Sting that showed more skin than her usual bikini along with beautiful roses in her hair. Sting reached out his arm for his girlfriend as they made their way to the dancefloor. But what had Rogue most of all was the blonde woman that was smirking at him from across the room. Every man's head turned as Lucy swayed her hips as she walked towards him in the skimpiest French Maid outfit he had ever seen. Her legs had see-through stockings that came up to her thighs and had garter straps to hold them up. Her breasts looked like they were about to pop out of the corset that fit perfectly around her hourglass figure. He knew that he would be in trouble tonight if she were to bend over to pick anything up off of the ground, because her skirt was so short and he'd knock out any man that dared look.

Rufus cleared his throat and said with a chuckle, "Good luck tonight, Rogue."

Rogue just absentmindedly nodded his head as Lucy finally reached him and sat down on his lap. He inhaled sharply at her sudden boldness, but then could smell that she must have done a shot of tequila. They had agreed to take things slow, but she was definitely going to make it hard on him tonight, in more ways than one, because she smelled like sweet sin. They had never came out as being an official couple, but Rogue could still hear everyone with his dragon hearing and for the past month, everyone seemed to think that they were a couple anyways.

Lucy wrapped her arms around his neck and whispered seductively in his ear, "Konban wa Goshuujinsama."

Rogue groaned as his hand slid up Lucy's legs. He looked into her lust filled eyes and audibly gulped before Lucy's lips brushed against his. He wanted to ravage her right there and pin her down on the table and fill every inch of her clearly wet arousal with his cock. However their kisses stopped when they heard Orga laugh behind them as the God Slayer said, "Nice outfit Lucy. I don't think I've ever seen Rogue so flustered in my life."

Lucy playfully winked at him before she turned to look at Orga, who had put purple streaks through his hair and he wore leather pants with a microphone in his hand, and said, "You look great too Orga! I like what Cancer did to your hair!"

"Me too! Be sure to thank him for me!" Orga yelled as Minerva grabbed the God Slayer to drag him to the dance floor.

The music got louder and quicker and Lucy looked at Rogue and asked, "Do you want to dance, Master?"

"You going to call me that all night?" Rogue growled playfully in her ear.

"Well you are dressed up as My Master," Lucy giggled as she began to kiss his neck.

Rogue began to kiss her back seductively. How could he resist when she whispered, "Kiss me, Master."

But then they froze when Dobengal yelled, "Well, I need to go wash out my eyes!"

Lucy and Rogue looked over at the Spatial Mage as Rufus walked up with a drink and asked, "What's wrong?"

Dobengal took a shot of vodka before he said, "Oh I don't know! Maybe seeing our  _beloved_  Master fucking the brains out of the ever sweet Yukino."

Lucy's mouth fell open in realization that she had lost the bet and Rogue began to laugh darkly as he whispered in her ear, "Looks like your costume will come in handy again very soon."

* * *

Lucy was hot and sweaty as she went to the bathroom at the guild after she and Rogue finished dancing. She had no idea that the stoic Rogue Cheney would be such an incredible dancer. She was so turned on, but it was her own fault for getting that way, but she couldn't help it. She felt truly happy and wanted to be with Rogue like a normal couple and he readily obliged and he never pushed her past what she felt like she was ready for. Everything she asked him for he did. He made her feel like they were the only two people in Earthland when he would stare at her with those sexy red eyes of his and then how his lips took away all of her pain.

Just as Lucy was about to leave the restroom, she felt one of her keys vibrate. She looked down in worry when she realized what key it was, then black smoke appeared as Corvus pushed his gate opened and yelled in panic, "Lucy run! He's here!"

Then before Lucy could even let out a scream, she was engulfed in darkness.


	7. Chapter 7

**Special Note: My opinion is, Mashima did a poor job during the Dragon Attack explaining some of the different timelines nonsense, for example: Future Rogue and Future Lucy were from different timelines.**

**Now having said that, I've added my own special twist. Enjoy! :D**

* * *

Yukino and Sting took a break from dancing and Yukino went to sit by Rogue while Sting grabbed them some drinks. "Where's Lucy?" Yukino asked her friend as she took a seat at the table.

"Restroom," Rogue replied. He was probably having the most fun he had ever had that night, minus the nearly constant erection. Lucy was enchanting and he was so glad at how much she was smiling tonight and enjoying the moment.

"You really like her don't you," Yukino said with happiness in her voice.

He looked over at his friend who was beaming at him before Yukino added, "I think you guys are good together. Like opposite sides to the same coin."

"Like you and Sting?" Rogue chuckled then watched as Yukino's face blushed. He smiled at her and said, "You are good for him, Yukino. He liked you for a long time, but showing that you cared about someone while Jiemma was here was a weakness and we all acted stupid, except for you. Sting just got confused, then when you came back he didn't think he deserved you so he still acted carefree in that regards. He wasn't sure what to do or how to act with you."

"Until Lucy came and we all joined a team," Yukino grinned.

Rogue nodded, "Until Lucy came."

"It's easy to see why Fairy Tail loved her so much. Our guild was doing better, but Lucy has brought in her own light—despite her own loss," Yukino pointed out, "You make her happy Rogue. Lucy is a good person and sometimes she is too quick to forgive. She tends to give her whole heart and never expects much in return from others. I think a lot of her past friendships took a lot from her but didn't give her anything back—emotionally speaking. But you give her what she needs. Thank you for protecting her heart."

Rogue smiled at Yukino and said, "It's like you have a sister again."

Yukino nodded and replied, "Even if I were to find my sister again someday, Lucy will always be my sister too."

Sting finally made it back with drinks. Just as he handed Yukino's to hers, her eyes went wide in fear as she whispered out, "Corvus."

Yukino shot out of her seat and screamed, "Lucy!"

Everyone in the guild froze and the music stopped as Yukino ran towards the restroom. Rogue panicked and went into his shadow form to reach the bathroom when he could smell Yukino's fear. Orga, Minerva, Rufus, and Dobengal followed them as everyone in Sabertooth got deadly serious as though they were expecting a fight.

Rogue reached the bathroom and yelled, "No!" When he saw that Lucy was gone and her keys were left on the restroom floor.

Yukino and Sting ran in behind him and Sting pulled Yukino back a little when Rogue went into Shadow Drive, because he was hardly able to control his magic from his anger. But Yukino pushed Sting away a little and said, "I need to talk to Corvus, he might now what happened."

Rogue fell to his knees in despair as Yukino grabbed the joint contracted keys and Lucy's. When Yukino tried to summon Corvus out, it didn't work. Frosch and Lector ran in and Frosch cried, "Frosch wants Lucy!"

A golden light filled the room and Loke stood before his friends and said, "Corvus can't come out because he is badly wounded."

"Who did this?!" Sting demanded to know.

Loke turned to look at Rogue and said in a serious tone, "We barely had any warning, but Corvus didn't hesitate when he tried to protect Lucy. The man who came was from the future and time travelled here, which is why it happened so fast. Corvus didn't detect him until it was too late."

"You don't mean..." Yukino whispered as she looked at Rogue too and remembered Corvus's warnings.

"Yes, it was Future Rogue. I pushed my gate open but was too late. I went back to check on Corvus a moment ago which is why I wasn't out when you got here. Corvus says we have until sunrise to find Lucy," Loke reported angrily.

"Why would Future Rogue take Lucy though?" Sting asked very confused.

Rogue continued to stare down at the ground in shame. This was horrible. He said he'd always be there for Lucy now the future version of himself was kidnapping her.

He cringed when he heard Loke say, "Maybe he came back in time again to finish killing her off."

"Loke!" Yukino yelled in horror.

"It's the truth," Loke spat out, "That Rogue and our Rogue are not the same person and if we think like that we will lose Lucy. Future Rogue already tried to kill Lucy, but accidently killed another alternate timeline Lucy, and he killed Sting."

Sting looked over at Rogue who looked like a shell of a man before he stated, "Well,  _our_  Rogue will save her." Then Sting turned around and ordered to Rufus, "Tell everyone the party stops until we find Lucy. Have everyone take communication lacrimas and head out. Look everywhere."

Loke had continued to stare at Rogue and then asked, "Is there a place that you think he might have taken her?"

Rogue thought carefully for a few minutes before he replied, "There was a place I visited frequently as a kid near Oak Town. It's where I would go when I was at my lowest, but I honestly don't' know where he would take her."

"Let's go," Loke stated flatly before he disappeared back into the Celestial Realm to wait for them to get there.

Sting nodded and Yukino summoned out Pegasus and Monoceros for them to ride. Sting ordered that Orga and Minerva stay at the guild, in case Rogue was wrong about where Lucy might be because they would be able to get to Lucy the fastest in case she was in the opposite direction.

Once they were outside, Yukino, Lector, and Sting mounted Pegasus while Frosch climbed up Monoceros. The Unicorn Spirit studied Rogue before he said grimly, "You told me when we first met that you'd die to protect Lucy. Does that include fighting yourself?"

"Yes," Rogue replied before he mounted the spirit.

The horses took off into the sky before Monoceros added, "I know you are troubled, young Dragon, but Lucy needs you. We will get her back."

Rogue just nodded his head and held onto Frosch when he heard the Exceed crying for Lucy. How would he ever be able to forgive himself? Or would Lucy ever forgive him?

* * *

Lucy felt her body being thrown to the ground and when she tried to reach for her keys, she swore when she realized that they weren't there. She couldn't even use her Star Dress form if she didn't have her keys, but at least she was fairly good at hand to hand combat know. Her body went cold with fear when she heard the familiar voice of Rogue say darkly, "I left your keys at my old guild."

The room was too dark for Lucy to see what was happening when she felt magic restraints lock her wrist. What did he mean by his old guild? She yelled in confusion, "Rogue, why are you doing this?! We were having a good time!"

She began to sob heavily when Rogue said grimly, "Don't act like we are friends yet in your timeline."

Lucy's eyes widened in realization. Corvus wasn't warning her about  _her_  Rogue. This wasn't her Rogue. She began to sob harder when the cave they were in lit up to reveal Future Rogue standing before her. He didn't look as well-groomed as the first time she encountered him at the games. He had a huge gash over his right eye and Lucy saw that he had a fake hand now. He looked terrifying.

He surprised her by asking, "Why were you at Sabertooth?"

She looked at him in anger. This wasn't the man she was falling in love with, this man was a monster. She stood up and spat out, "Because I'm a member of Sabertooth."

His eyes widened in shock before she added, "I can't show you, because you put me in these stupid cuffs. But if you remove my left glove you will see my mark."

She watched as he hesitated before he used his shadow magic to rip the glove off. He studied her and asked, "Where's Natsu?"

"I don't know," Lucy replied, "Please let me go home to Rogue."

"What?" Future Rogue asked in shock.

Lucy thought that just maybe she could reach through to him when she said honestly, "I joined Sabertooth over a month ago when Fairy Tail broke up. I went to be with Yukino because I had sacrificed one of my keys to save everyone in Fairy Tail and I only trusted Yukino. We are on a team with Sting, Lector, Frosch, and my Rogue."

" _Your_  Rogue?" the future version asked.

"He's my soulmate," Lucy stated in a whispered voice. Deep down in her heart she felt somewhat relieved. It made sense now why she felt safe with Rogue.

Lucy smiled faintly and then repeated Corvus's warning, "On the night when the veil is thinnest, someone from your past and a possible future will appear once more. He will try to change fate before the world will go back to the way it was before."

Future Rogue said nothing. Several minutes passed before he asked, "What was that you recited?"

"A vision from Corvus. He's a spirit that is joint contracted with me and Yukino," Lucy answered as she took a step towards Future Rogue. If she could somehow reach his good side then maybe everything would be ok.

"I can't let you leave," Future Rogue stated.

"Please," Lucy pleaded as tears fell down her face.

"The world only got worse after I went back. We need a Celestial Spirit to lock the dragons and demons away!" Future Rogue shouted, "And every last Celestial Mage is dead thanks to Acnologia!"

"You can't just take me from my time! You killed the future me even though she wasn't from your timeline! Your world is not my problem!" Lucy cried harshly.

"That's true, but it is my problem," Future Rogue said as he pushed Lucy against the cave wall.

"He won't let you take me," Lucy cried out because Rogue's fingers were digging into her flesh harshly.

"The me of this time?" Future Rogue laughed out in disgust, "It doesn't matter. In less than a year Frosch will die and you..."

"He won't! I'll protect him," Lucy argued. Silence fell between them and Lucy asked, "What was your relationship with me?"

Future Rogue flinched before he lessened his grip on her. Then Future Rogue answered, "Fairy Tail did not break up. You were still on Team Natsu."

"Why did you want to kill me before?" Lucy asked quietly.

"You closed the gate," Future Rogue stated quickly.

"You're hiding something from me," Lucy stated angrily. She didn't know how, but she knew that Future Rogue was keeping something from her. His eyes would hardly look at her.

However, she had overstepped her bounds when Future Rogue shoved her against the wall again harshly. Then she felt shock when she saw tears run down his face. This man had killed her, she should hate him. He was full of rage and despair, yet she couldn't help but reach out and touch him. Thinking that her Rogue could turn into this person shattered her heart.

"He raped you," Future Rogue growled out as his grip on her tightened.

Her eyes widened in terror when she asked, "Who?"

"Acnologia, in his human form," Future Rogue admitted.

Lucy remained silent because she didn't know what to do with this information. Then Future Rogue added, "You and I had just started dating because you would visit Yukino a lot and that's how we got to know each other. One night while you were in Magnolia, Acnologia came to destroy Fairy Tail; however, he found you and overpowered you in his mission to wipe out Celestial Magic from the world because it could stop him. He tortured you and I was too late to save you."

Lucy watched the man beside her breakdown before he said, "When I got to you, you were dying in my arms and you wanted me to kill you."

"So you came back in time to stop the gates from being closed so that history wouldn't repeat itself?" Lucy whispered to him.

"Yes, you would have rather died than live through what he did to you again," Future Rogue sobbed out as his hands gripped her shoulders tighter, "You have to come back with me. I can't keep losing you. I didn't want to kill you."

Lucy felt terrible for the man in front of her. He wasn't her Rogue, but somewhere her heart ached for him nonetheless. So she asked, "Why didn't you just tell me that when you came back in time?"

"At that point I was engulfed in the darkness for too long Lucy I lost you and I lost Frosch. You were the only people I truly cared about in the whole world. It didn't matter if either of you died when I came back, because fate was going to take you both away from me again anyways. If I could end your life so that you wouldn't have to suffer, then that is what I was going to do," Rogue spat out before he added in disgust, "Even now my darkness consumes me, you don't know how hard it is right now to not take you myself when you are dressed like that."

Lucy looked down and realized that she was still in her Halloween costume. "Please don't take me to the future with you. It sounds like on your timeline we had a terrible time, but this one is already different. I'm a member of Sabertooth and I'm in love with Rogue. Please don't take me away from him. He helps me through my darkness."

Lucy began to sob when Future Rogue didn't say anything. Then he asked, "Which key did you sacrifice?"

Lucy looked into Future Rogue's eyes when he added, "You said that you had sacrificed a key to save everyone."

"Aquarius," Lucy whispered out.

She watched as Future Rogue's face twisted in pain briefly before he said, "For what it's worth I'm sorry. I know how close you were to Aquarius because of your mother. Aquarius tried to save you when Acnologia came for you in my timeline."

"Sounds like something she would do," Lucy whispered with a faint smile.

Lucy dared not move as Future Rogue cried while he held onto her. He rested his head on her shoulder. She thought about how she could knee him in his crotch and run, but she knew she wouldn't get very far with no magic and in her costume. She closed her eyes and sent up a silent prayer that her Rogue would find her soon.

Suddenly their silence was broken when Future Rogue asked, "Does he treat you well?"

"Who?" Lucy asked.

"Me," Future Rogue replied.

Lucy smiled gently and answered, "He treats me very well. Up until this past week we have just been good friends. We make bets together, usually about Sting and Yukino because they are dating. Unfortunately you won the bet tonight and now I have to be your slave for a day."

Future Rogue blushed a little and then apologized, "I'm sorry for ruining your costume then."

Lucy wasn't sure what to say next but then Future Rogue asked, "Lucy, will you please come with me to the future? I miss you so much."

"I can't," Lucy cried, "That is not my world. Besides if I leave with you, what will happen to this Rogue? I love him and I don't want to lose him or him fall into the darkness like you did. Plus, I have to protect Frosch."

Her eyes widened when Future Rogue grabbed her into a hug and whispered, "I'm sorry. I still had to ask."

"I understand," Lucy replied gently, "If I suddenly lost you, then I would find a way to get you back too."

Future Rogue smiled weakly at her before he grabbed her chin with his hand. His eyes darted to her lips before he said, "We would have had to wait until dawn before we could return to my timeline and if I didn't take you back then the price would be that I fade from existence."

"So what will you do now?" Lucy asked when she realized that Future Rogue still had her pinned against the wall and was still holding onto her tightly. She honestly didn't know if he was lying and would try to take her back anyways in desperation.

"I'll remain here. There is nothing left for me in my timeline. It is nothing but a wasteland," Future Rogue said darkly.

Lucy just nodded her head then before she knew what was happening, Future Rogue's hand started to roam down her body as he said in a lowered tone, "I need to feel your lips one more time."

"Wait!" Lucy cried out, but Future Rogue had pressed himself against her and crashed his lips down onto her.

She was struggling to push him away when she heard, "STAY AWAY FROM HER! SHADOW DRAGON'S ROAR!"

Rogue's attack hit Future Rogue and knocked him away from Lucy. Lucy turned and her eyes widened when she saw Rogue in his Shadow Drive form. His angry eyes remained glued on the future version of himself, but Lucy quickly ran over to him. Rogue's eyes fell to hers and immediately softened when he saw the tears running down her face and he opened his arms so that she could jump into them.

"Oh Lucy, thank god you are safe," Rogue murmured as he buried his face in the crook of her neck.

"I knew you would find me," Lucy cried as she tried to get as close to him as possible but it was difficult with her restraints.

Rogue saw the device around her wrists and grew angry again before he removed them. Once the cuffs fell, Lucy wrapped her arms around Rogue's neck and pulled his mouth down onto hers. The tears continued to come, because she felt so much pain. Pain for a future that would thankfully not exist, but it still frightened her. They would still need to protect Frosch and she would need to tell Rogue about Acnologia. Plus, she had to make sure that Rogue wouldn't fall into his own darkness.

"Did he hurt you?" Rogue asked suddenly as he pulled away from their kiss.

"No, I'm fine," Lucy said as she held onto Rogue. She was a little banged up, but she would be fine.

Rogue's lips began to soothe her heart as he kissed her gently again, but then they both froze when they heard Future Rogue stand up behind Lucy. Rogue immediately put Lucy protectively behind him and said to his future self, "I won't let you take her."

"I'm sorry, I have no intention of taking her anymore," Future Rogue stated.

Rogue was about to attack the man again, but Lucy stopped him when she put her hand gently on his arm and whispered to him, "He's suffered enough, Rogue."

"What was he doing to you then?" Rogue growled out, not at Lucy but towards Future Rogue.

Future Rogue spoke up and said, "I apologize. I just wanted to feel the love of my life's lips one more time before I too die."

Lucy watched as Rogue stood in horror, then Future Rogue said, "I'm sure Lucy will tell you everything you want to know; however, I have to ask one favor."

Rogue and Lucy remained silent, but Lucy nodded her head because she wanted to hear it. Future Rogue had tears fall down his eyes again and he asked, "Will you stand by me and watch the sunrise with me one last time, before I fade from existence?"

Lucy looked up at her Rogue and then Future Rogue added, "Of course he can stand with us too."

"Sting is outside," Rogue bluntly stated as he narrowed his eyes at the man.

"Good, I wish to apologize to him," Future Rogue said as he brushed himself off.

Rogue held onto Lucy as the three exited the cave. Lucy leaned her head against her Rogue and then smiled when she saw her friends waiting for her outside of the cave. Loke, Yukino, Lector, and Frosch all yelled her name simultaneously and started to run towards her but then froze when they saw Future Rogue with them.

"What the fuck is he doing here?" Loke growled out as his fists began to glow.

Lucy quickly intervened and said, "It was a very big misunderstanding. I'll explain everything later, I promise Loke."

Loke looked at Rogue who still didn't look happy, but the Zodiac leader nodded his head and said, "As you wish. I am glad you are safe though."

"Thank you Loke," Lucy said with a faint smile because she knew that Loke had probably been worried out of his mind. Then Loke disappeared back into his own world.

Sting however did not take his eyes off of Future Rogue. The man from the future walked up to the Sabertooth Master and said, "This won't mean anything to you, but I apologize for not being a better friend. I fell into darkness after I lost those dearest to me. Seeing the Rogue and Lucy in this timeline though, I think things will be much different. Please help Rogue keep Lucy and Frosch safe."

Sting didn't say anything and then Future Rogue looked at Frosch and smiled. The Exceed was holding onto Lucy and crying and he watched as the blonde tried to soothe him. He prayed that this timeline would find happiness—not suffering. Lucy deserved to be happy.

The Rogues looked at each other and knew that it was almost time. Lucy looked over at Future Rogue too and then Rogue, Lucy, and Frosch went to stand by the future version while Sting, Yukino, and Lector watched them.

Lucy stood in-between the two men and then said to Future Rogue as she kept her eyes on the horizon, "I hope that you find peace and that you can find me of your timeline in the afterlife."

She could see Future Rogue smile faintly before he replied, "As do I."

Then just before the sun rose, Future Rogue said to Rogue, "Please protect them. They will both need you in the future. Believe me, you do not want to feel the pain I have felt."

Rogue looked down at Lucy who was looking up at him sadly as Frosch stared at Future Rogue. Rogue continued to look into Lucy's tear filled eyes and promised, "I swear I will keep them both safe."

The sun began to rise over the trees and the mages all watched as Future Rogue's body began to glow as bright as the sun. Future Rogue looked at Lucy one more time and said, "Farewell, My Love." Then he was gone.

All the Sabertooth mages stood there in silence before Sting finally asked, "Would someone care to explain what the fuck that was about?"

* * *

**Heaven…**

Future Rogue opened his eyes. He was laying in the middle of a grassy meadow that was covered in wildflowers. The sky was a beautiful blue with white puffy clouds as the sun shone down on him.

He stood up and looked down at his clothes. He was dressed in a white shirt with white pants and no shoes. He felt his hair and it was shorter again, like how it used to be. Where was he? The darkness was gone. The pain was gone. He felt…at peace.

Suddenly he heard behind him a beautiful voice call out to him, "Rogue! We've been waiting for you!"

Rogue turned around and wanted to cry when he saw Lucy, Sting, and Frosch sitting on a large picnic blanket with delicious foods scattered across it. He ran towards them and Lucy stood up and jumped into his arms. She was real. She was here. He was finally with her again.

Then Sting said, "Don't feel bad about killing me. I knew it wasn't really you."

"Sting," Rogue whispered out in remorse. How could his best friend so easily forgive him?

Sting just gave him a cheesy grin and said, "It's fine, someone had to keep Lucy and Frosch company until you got here."

"Frosch thinks so too," Frosch said as the little Exceed wore a white frog costume with a small halo over it.

Rogue looked down at Lucy and tried to say, "I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry for everything…"

"Rogue," Lucy said with a smile, "Do you know where we are?"

Rogue shook his head no, then Lucy giggled and said, "We are in heaven silly. You wouldn't be here if you weren't supposed to be. I've missed you so much and I knew you would find the right path again in the end."

"Lucy, I've missed you so much. I've done such horrible things," Rogue admitted to the girl that stood before him.

"I know, Sweetie, but none of that matters now. We are finally together again and will be forever," Lucy replied with a smile as she brushed her lips to his.

Rogue kissed her back then hugged her close to him and knew he could stay like that for all eternity. Then he smiled when she whispered, "Welcome Home, My Dragon Slayer."


	8. Chapter 8

Rogue and Lucy just got back to Lucy's and Yukino's apartment. Lucy had slept almost the whole way back, so they did not speak yet about what transpired that night. Sting and Yukino said that they would look after Frosch for the day so that Rogue and Lucy could talk privately.

Lucy sleepily unlocked the door to their apartment and Rogue followed her in with a worried expression. Once Rogue shut the door behind them and locked it again he said, "Lucy, we need to talk about what happened."

"I know," Lucy whispered out. Her Halloween costume was more or less torn to shreds. She wanted to shower and change, but she didn't want to be alone either. She looked at Rogue who looked like he was in so much pain when she said, "Um…Future Rogue wanted to take me back to his timeline."

"What for?" Rogue asked grimly.

Lucy took a deep breath. She had no idea how Rogue would take any of this news. She continued to look into his worried red eyes when she replied, "In his timeline, all of the Celestial Mages are dead. He wanted me so that I could help him lock away the dragons and demons…"

Rogue waited patiently because he knew that there was more. Especially since he walked in on Future Rogue trying to take advantage of Lucy. The thought made him sick that his future version could become so corrupted.

Lucy swallowed hard before she continued, "He told me that in his timeline…we were dating, but Fairy Tail never disbanded. He said Acnologia came to destroy Fairy Tail and when he did…he…"

Rogue walked over to Lucy and held her close because she started crying. He tried to fight down his own fears when he asked, "What did he do?"

"He raped me," Lucy cried into Rogue's chest, "Future Rogue said that by the time he got to me that I was dying in his arms and that I asked him to kill me. That's why he came back during the games. He said it didn't matter if Frosch or I died then, because he didn't want the future to repeat itself."

Lucy continued to cry. She cried for a future that she hoped would never exist, she cried that she and Rogue had a really shitty life in another timeline, and she cried from exhaustion.

Rogue didn't say anything as he processed everything. He knew about the threat over Frosch; however, he had no idea that Acnologia was interested in Lucy—or Celestial Mages. Rogue knew that he would need to tell Sting, because if Acnologia was after Celestial Mages then Sabertooth would be a target for having two. But at least in this timeline Lucy would be by his side so that he could protect her. However, the thought that he had the potential to do so much damage bothered him.

Lucy wiped her tears away before she said, "I feel bad for him."

"Who?" Rogue asked.

"Future You. No wonder he hurt Sting, he had lost everything he loved in a terrible way. Both Frosch and I didn't die natural deaths—we were murdered," Lucy whimpered out, "He must have felt so alone."

Rogue felt a pang in his chest at Lucy's sincerity. Her heart was pure gold. Then he kissed her head and said, "I won't let anything happen to us in this timeline; I won't let you and Frosch die and I won't let the darkness consume me. Things are already different since you are a member of Sabertooth now, so we will have a different future too."

Lucy smiled faintly at him before she stood on her tiptoes and pressed her lips against Rogue's. Rogue finally felt his body relax a little when Lucy melted into his arms and her hands ran through his hair to pull him deeper into the kiss.

Rogue couldn't help but smirk when they kissed and Lucy pulled away a little and asked, "What's so amusing?"

He chuckled a little and replied, "So I take it that means we are soulmates?"

Lucy blushed like crazy before she teased and said, "Do you still think soulmates be damned?"

"Hell no, I knew that you would always be mine," Rogue nearly growled at her as he captivated her lips once more.

They were both consumed with fear of an unknown future and the pained thought that they might lose each other one day. Lucy never wanted to let go of Rogue for fear that he would be gone. It would be too cruel of fate to lose her best friends, Aquarius, and Rogue too. She didn't want that to happen.

Lucy pulled away a little and breathily said, "Rogue, I don't want to shower alone."

She felt her stomach slam with butterflies when Rogue roughly grabbed her face and crashed his lips down onto hers. There was no point to hold back anymore. Neither of them knew what the future would bring, but what they did know was that they wanted to be with each other for the rest of it.

Rogue grabbed the neckline of Lucy's costume and ripped it off of her body. She gasped in shock and he muttered out as he picked her up and wrapped her legs around him, "I'll buy you a new one for when you are my slave for a day."

Lucy leaned her head back as Rogue kissed her neck, his teeth grazing along her skin. She felt self-conscious because she was covered in dirt and probably smelled like a mixture of alcohol and sweat, but Rogue didn't seem to care as he led them into her room and towards her bathroom.

He continued his exploration of her body when he sat her ass down on her bathroom counter and unhooked her bra. Lucy bit her lip out of nervousness when Rogue pulled away to admire her body. His hands roamed freely so that he could memorize everything about her. His red eyes shone in delight when he said huskily, "You are even more beautiful than I imagined."

Lucy's face heated up again from the compliment and her body ached from exhaustion, but also for him. She wanted him inside of her. Her hands pulled at his coat and she met his gaze before she purred out, "Why do you still have so many clothes on? Are you going to make me shower alone?"

"Hell no," Rogue whispered out in a gruff tone and let Lucy's hands untie his dress coat.

She smiled wickedly at him and asked, "Master, can I take off your clothes."

"Fuck," was all Rogue could groan out as Lucy hopped off the counter and began undressing him painfully slow.

He watched her amused face as she let his shirt and dress coat fall to the ground. However, she ran her fingers up his silk tie and tightened it a little before she moaned out, "Master, I want you to take my virginity."

Rogue looked into Lucy's lust filled and sweet eyes. She was having fun, but she meant every word of it. His strained arousal was practically screaming at him to hurry up, but he captivated her lips before he whispered to her, "I love you more than anything in the world, Lucy."

"I love you more than anything too, My Dragon Slayer," Lucy smiled back at him.

Rogue didn't need to wait any longer as he pulled Lucy closer to the edge of the counter and put his fingers on her panties and started to pull them down, gently kissing her flushed skin on his way down. His hands spread her legs gently and Lucy was nervous and embarrassed all at the same time. However, Rogue eyed her hungrily as his firm hands squeezed into her thighs and he put his head between her legs just before his tongue snaked over her clit.

All Lucy could do was moan out in response to the new sensation. She felt wound up and her toes curled because she needed more, she didn't know how but feeling Rogue's tongue sliding along her wet woman hood made her feel crazy and she couldn't think straight. She grabbed his hair because she didn't know where her hands were supposed to be when his hands wrapped around her legs from behind her thighs as his hunger increased.

Lucy could feel pressure building more and more inside of her and finally she whimpered out, "Rogue, please I need more. I need you."

Rogue's ruby red eyes looked up at her from between her legs and Lucy thought he had never looked sexier when he smirked at her. He stood back up and kissed her lips. She could taste herself on them, but Rogue seemed to enjoy it more because he teased her entrance with his fingers.

"You ready to shower then?" Rogue whispered in her ear.

Lucy didn't even reply as she jumped off the counter and grabbed ahold of Rogue's belt and quickly unfastened it. At that moment, Lucy thanked Cana in her head for being overly talkative as she remembered how the brunette once described the best way to give a man a blow job. She wanted to get Rogue just as lost as her. She pulled his pants down then quickly turned on the large shower knob so that the water would heat up quickly.

Then before Rogue could tease her more, Lucy quickly dropped to her knees in front of him. Her tiny hands grabbed ahold of his impressive member. She felt him shudder from her touch, which elicited a cat like grin from her when she kissed the inner part of his thigh and gave his shaft a firm but slow tug.

Rogue sucked in a tight breath from Lucy's actions and she started to tease him the way he did her, but not for long because she only wanted to watch him lose control a little. Rogue was normally so reserved and she liked seeing this side of him. She looked right into his eyes when she ran her tongue over the small slit of his cock, tasting the delicious precum that awaited her. She watched as his eyes closed and he had to grab the wall for support and his other hand instinctively grabbed the back of her head.

"Lucy," Rogue groaned as her mouth latched around his throbbing member.

He could feel her smile even though her mouth was still firmly around his shaft. He couldn't help but smile too. Ever since Corvus warned Lucy about his vision, Rogue had secretly been worried the whole time. He was so afraid that Lucy's soulmate was Natsu and that he would lose her if he ever showed back up. But now…Rogue knew that Lucy was really his…forever. He would protect and keep her safe. If the threat of Acnologia was real in this timeline too, then he would make sure that he would never let him touch Lucy. Nobody would ever see Lucy this way except for him.

The shower was finally warm and even though Lucy's mouth around his dick was pure bliss, he wanted to be inside of her fully. He pulled on her shoulders and she begrudgingly pulled away from his member with a frown, but he gave her an amused look and said, "Don't worry, if you love doing that so much I'll make sure to request it when you are my slave."

At Rogue's commanding tone, Lucy had to cross her legs to relieve the ache that was building there. Then he quickly pulled her into the shower so that they could wash away the dirt and fear from the night that they just had. Lucy eeped as the warm water sprayed over them. Neither of them could stop smiling as their lips continuously met each other's.

When Lucy's soapy hand roamed over Rogue's still hardened shaft, he couldn't help but growl and said, "We need to make this shower quick. I need you, Lucy."

Her heart fluttered in excitement from his words and from his appearance. Rogue looked like a god as the water cascaded down his body and his dark hair. Lucy's own hair was much more difficult to wash now, because of the length, but she quickly got it taken care of and then tied it up in bun on her head just as Rogue's hands found his way to her breasts.

"Rogue," Lucy whimpered when his thumb teased her nipple.

"Sorry, you are just so beautiful and I can't believe this is happening," Rogue said with a slight blush covering his own face.

Lucy blinked a few times and asked, "Why?"

"I just never thought I would love someone so much," Rogue admitted to her.

Lucy brushed her lips against his before she said, "Let's go to the bed."

Rogue grinned and turned the shower off. They both haphazardly dried off just before Rogue grabbed ahold of Lucy's body once more and carried her into her room. Lucy's hand where everywhere in desperation. They had both been turned on for too long and Lucy wanted all of Rogue right then and there.

He gently sat Lucy on the edge of the bed, his lips never leaving hers before he climbed in with her. Lucy smiled a little before she pulled the covers back and shimmied under them. Rogue met her smiled and crawled under them with her. His hands cupped her face and he looked into her loving eyes before he slowed down their tempo and gave her a deep and passionate kiss.

Lucy's breath caught in her throat as Rogue's hands slid down her bare back, pulling her closer against his body. She felt safe and warm as she rested her hands on his muscular chest. She could feel his hardened cock press into her stomach. She had always wondered when she was younger how she would fall in love and she never would have guessed that it would have ended up like this, but ever since Lucy had joined Sabertooth—Rogue had been by her side. He helped her through her loss with Aquarius, he helped her with the loss of her guild, and he was a genuine friend to her. He had added so much happiness to her life. All of them did. Lucy loved being a member of Sabertooth.

Rogue trailed tender kisses down her jawline and onto her neck. He loved feeling her body react to every touch of his and to every kiss. He loved hearing the sweet sounds that escaped her lips, especially when his name was amongst them. His heart felt light for the first time in his life and nothing was more perfect for him than this moment with Lucy.

He trailed his kisses back up her body and onto her lips once more before he rolled her over onto her back. Her legs spread for him and he could smell her arousal growing stronger and stronger. She had been soaking wet ever since they started up and throughout the entire shower. He had no idea how he had been able to keep his composure.

After Rogue had leaned over and positioned himself between Lucy's legs, his cock gently brushing against her weeping center, Lucy tugged on his lower lip with her teeth before she whimpered, "Rogue, I'm ready."

Rogue's eyes met hers and he gently kissed her cheek before he lined himself up. His raspy voice filled with lust and love said, "Lucy, I'll always be here for you."

"I know," Lucy smiled at him just before he plunged himself inside of her.

He groaned with how tight Lucy was, but then worried that he hurt her when he heard her whimper under him. "Are you ok? Does it hurt?" Rogue asked with worry.

"It's just…" Lucy tried to say as she readjusted herself to the new pressure. "It's just so big," she moaned when the initial discomfort finally started to feel like pleasure.

"Holy fuck," was all Rogue could grunt out after Lucy's statement, "Do you even know how sexy that sounded?"

"I'm sorry, I was just telling you the truth," Lucy breathily replied as she tried to rock her hips against his because she wanted more.

Rogue watched as a playful gleam got into Lucy's eyes and her hands ran up to his shoulders before she whispered, "Now, make love to me My Dragon Slayer."

"With pleasure," Rogue replied in a gruff tone before he put his hand behind her head to kiss her deeply while bucking his hips into her further.

Lucy's back arched off the bed, as Rogue thrusted deeper and deeper inside of her. Her hands trailed across his muscular back as he kissed her neck hungrily. Lucy's heart felt like it could explode from the warmth she felt for the man making love to her. She had been at one of the lowest points in her life, the first being when she lost her Mother, but Rogue had been kind and thoughtful from the beginning. She couldn't never love anyone more than she loved him and she had somehow known it before Future Rogue had even taken her. It didn't matter that they were soulmates, she just wanted him—all of him.

Rogue's hands found themselves onto Lucy's breasts and he gave them a firm squeeze which made Lucy moan even louder. He was captivated by her very being. Even during her dark times, she still shone as brightly as a star to him. Hearing her say his name, asking him to thrust into her harder—it was almost more than he could handle. He would never lose her and he would satisfy her as much as she wanted.

Lucy's fingers dug into Rogue's shoulders when his tongue teased her nipple. He snapped his hips at a new angle that made Lucy's head roll back in desire. She could feel her body start to build faster and faster. "Rogue, don't stop," Lucy moaned out before she wrapped her hands around his neck to pull him into a searing hot kiss.

He could feel her walls clamp down around him so hard that he swore against her lips and grunted, "You feel so damn good."

Their kisses became more passionate and frantic as Rogue helped Lucy get closer and closer to her release. Lucy knew she was about to come undone, but she wanted Rogue to go with her. She gently pulled away from their kiss before she whispered to him, "Rogue, please cum in me."

"Fuck," was all Rogue could say in response. He would make her his in every way as he snapped in and out of her faster. He could feel his body tensing just like hers and he felt like he was about to lose his goddamn mind because it felt so good.

Finally, Lucy's head went back again as her breasts pressed into his muscular chest and she cried out his name. The rawness of Lucy that Rogue witnessed was the most beautiful thing that he had ever seen as he plunged into her one last time before he claimed her as his. Their bodies released their tension as ripples of pleasure ran through both of them.

Rogue had no idea how long he had remained over Lucy as both of their bodies finally started to relax and their minds cleared. When Rogue pulled himself out of Lucy, she winced a little and he gently rolled her onto his chest as he laid down next to her.

She wrapped her leg around one of his as she rested her head on his shoulder. She felt so happy and so exhausted after being up for over 24 hours. She looked up at Rogue who had his eyes closed, but with a faint smile on his face.

He looked down at her and kissed her head before he said, "I love you, Lucy."

Lucy yawned and smiled before she closed her eyes and replied, "I love you too, Rogue."


	9. Chapter 9

Lucy felt warm and relaxed in her bed. She hadn't even opened her eyes yet, but she smiled anyways as she felt the rise and fall of Rogue's chest. When she snuggled closer to him, his arm immediately pulled her closer while he let out a sleepy grunt.

She finally let her eyes flutter open and she looked up at the man that made love to her last night. The man that she was in love with. It still made her heart flutter at the thought of how a few months could change everything about a person's life.

However, a deep pain crept into Lucy's heart as she thought about Aquarius. She couldn't help but wonder at what Aquarius would think when she learned that Lucy had a boyfriend now. She missed her dear friend so much, then she grew even sadder as she thought about how she was only a member of Sabertooth because of Tartaros. The thought of not being with Rogue nearly broke her heart just thinking about it. What if she lost him like Future Rogue lost his Lucy? What if they were doomed for more pain?

Lucy didn't even notice Rogue walking up. He felt incredible and genuinely happy, which were rare moments for him. However, he stiffened when he smelled fear coming off of Lucy and the smell of salt from her tears.

He gently shook her shoulder and asked in a concerned voice, "Hey, what's wrong?"

Lucy's big, sad brown eyes looked up at him and she gave him a pained smile before she replied, "Sorry, I was just lost in my thoughts."

Rogue took in a deep breath before he sat up on the bed. Lucy moved away for a moment, but then he immediately pulled her up against him again. The feeling of their naked bodies wrapped around each other felt amazing. Lucy's skin was so soft and she was incredibly breathtaking. He almost found it hard to control himself now that she was his and he was hers.

However, Rogue cleared his throat and stated, "Lucy, what were your thoughts about?"

When Lucy didn't reply, Rogue added in with a smile, "Don't make me invoke my right as your master today. I really wanted to save it for later."

Rogue's joke finally made Lucy laugh as she looked up into his mysterious red eyes. He looked so cute this morning with his messy black hair. Then she took a deep breath and blurted out, "I was just thinking about Aquarius and what she would think of us and then that got me to thinking about how I'm only a member of Sabertooth because of Tartaros—where I lost Aquarius. Then that got me thinking about Future Rogue and everything he and his Lucy went through and what if Acnologia tries something in this timeline too?! What if we are separated like they were? I just don't want to lose any more people I love; my parents, Aquarius, my guild, my team...I can't lose you too."

Rogue's chest ached for Lucy and he gently kissed her head while she let out her fears and cried. He took a deep breath and replied in a gentle tone, "Future Rogue's life is not ours. The timelines are already different. We have no way of finding out if Acnologia plans to do the same in this timeline; however, at least we are aware of his intentions from another timeline which means that we can prepare. We won't be caught off guard and Sabertooth will protect you and Yukino. You won't lose anyone else you love, Lucy."

Lucy felt terrible as she thought about how Yukino might be in danger too. She was like the sister she never had. Then Lucy said, "We should tell Yukino and Sting as soon as possible."

Rogue gently rubbed his hand up and down Lucy's bare arm slowly before he replied, "We can tell them tonight. I'm sure everyone wants to see that you are safe after you were kidnapped. Does that happen to you a lot though?"

"Getting kidnapped?" Lucy asked for clarification.

"Yeah," Rogue smiled.

Lucy thought about it for a moment before she honestly replied, "Yeah, I suppose it does." Then Lucy looked back up at Rogue as she slid one of her small fingers up his body. She slowly began to kiss his muscular chest and she could feel his hand flex from the tension when she purred out, "Guess you'll just have to keep a very close eye on me, Rogue Cheney."

Rogue let out an almost feral growl as he flipped Lucy over on her back, making her giggle in excitement. His cock was already begging him to be inside of her, especially when Lucy bit her lip and spread her legs wider for him. He began to kiss her neck hungrily after he replied in a husky tone, "I don't plan on letting you out of my sight."

Lucy arched into his kisses and tried to pull him closer when she felt the tip of his member brush up against her wet entrance. Last night being so intimate with him made her feel so alive and she wanted more. His strong hand cupped the back of her neck as he pulled her into a passionate kiss.

Then Lucy's heart nearly stopped when the bedroom door flew open and Frosch's voice asked, "Frosch wants to know why Rogue is on top of Lucy?"

"Holy shit," Rogue murmured in shock as Lucy let out a loud eep.

The Shadow Dragon Slayer quickly covered their naked bodies and looked at a very blissfully ignorant Frosch. Then Rogue heard from the apartment hallway Sting cracking up and Yukino asking him what was so funny. Rogue narrowed his eyes when he heard Sting cackle out, "I sent Frosch in first to scare the shit out of Rogue and Lucy because they were about to bang again."

Rogue growled and wrapped a sheet around his waist as he heard Yukino smack Sting and berated him. He was going to hurt Sting even more than he did Ichiya once he got his hands on him.

Then Frosch hopped up onto the bed, because he was still expecting an answer. Lucy looked embarrassed as she held the covers up under her neck and Rogue used his shadow magic to close the door to the room just as Yukino, Sting, and Lector walked into the living room. He was going to make Sting pay for this, especially with how many times Rogue had made sure the past few weeks that Sting and Yukino weren't interrupted.

Lucy looked over at Rogue, because he should be the one to talk to Frosch about what was happening, but then Rogue looked mortified and he didn't want to ruin Frosch's innocence. Rogue just tried to clear his throat as he replied, "W-well, I was just helping Lucy…giving her a hug."

Then Frosch looked at Lucy and asked, "Can Frosch give you a hug too?"

"Yep," Lucy smiled but tried to keep the blanket up around her body just as Frosch lunged for her. She felt so bad that Frosch had bought the story, but the little Exceed just seemed so damn happy.

Lucy and Rogue both looked at each other and smiled while Frosch happily told them everything he did that day. Lucy had forgotten how it was morning when they hadn't gotten back to their apartment and it was already late in the afternoon. Then just as quickly as he arrived, Frosch disappeared and went back into the living room because Yukino and Sting were ordering everyone takeout because they were all still fatigued from the events of the past day.

Once the door closed again, Lucy and Rogue both let out a sigh of relief. Then Lucy looked at Rogue and said, "I feel so horrible! Do you think he knows what we were doing? Did we scar him for life?!"

Rogue just replied sadly, "I think he believed my lie that I was hugging you."

Lucy put a pillow up to her face and said, "I feel so bad!"

"Don't be, Sting is the one that will pay," Rogue said in an annoyed tone.

Lucy didn't argue with Rogue, instead she just giggled because he looked so serious. Then she gently nudged him and said, "It's ok…I mean you are going to stay the night tonight too, right?"

Rogue gently smiled at her and replied, "I will stay with you every night from now on, Lucy."

She felt happy at his comment and couldn't hide her smile before she said, "I guess we better get ready, because who knows what Sting will try next."

Rogue looked annoyed again at the thought of Sting, but then he watched as Lucy daintily walked to the bathroom. He knew he would never get tired of looking at her, then she turned around and gave him a playful wink and asked, "Do you want to come hug me in the shower too?"

Then before Lucy knew what was happening, Rogue had used his Shadow Magic and already had her up against the bathroom counter and began to ravish her body. Lucy just smiled to herself as she thought about her first night as a Sabertooth Mage—Orga was right, she and Yukino did get paired up with a pair horny Dragon Slayers.


	10. Chapter 10

Lucy knew that she could easily get used to showering with Rogue every day as she watched him towel dry his hair. She admired him as she flopped down on her own bed to towel dry her own hair and smiled at the recent memory of them in the shower a few moments ago; she had been torn between extending the shower time with Rogue, but when he mentioned that the take-out food had arrived, her stomach gave her away and hunger won out over passionate sex.

"I hope that every time we want to have sex that we don't have to take a shower," Lucy laughed as she ran the towel through her hair.

Rogue just chuckled as he put a pair of pants on. Virgo had already made quick work of bringing most of Rogue's clothing to Lucy's and Yukino's apartment because the Maid Spirit knew how much Lucy needed the Shadow Dragon Slayer right now. Rogue didn't mind the thoughtful spirit's over achieving demeanor—in fact it only reminded him of how close Lucy was to her spirits and how they were her family and now becoming his own family as well. In his mind, they were no different to Lucy than Frosch was to him. It made him mad to think about how the other people she considered her family left without so much as a word—just a stupid note. You just don't go through so much with someone and not have the decency to say goodbye to their face.

He looked at his beautiful girlfriend and stated, "Well I know if we have to shower every time, then your water bill is going to go way up."

Lucy started to laugh at Rogue's response, but then her mind went to her old team. A sudden sharp pain filled her heart as Natsu's face popped into her mind—and in an instant she was back in a dark and lonely place. Erza, Gray, Happy, and Natsu always used to barge into her apartment and it didn't matter if she was bathing or sleeping. They were just there. Always there. Then just as fast as they entered her life—they left her. Did she really mean that little to them? Did they really think she was that weak that she couldn't come along to wherever it was that they all went? Then she lost Aquarius, who she had known since she could remember anything. Everything was just so different now.

"Lucy, what's wrong?" Rogue asked instantly because he could sense the sudden shift in her mood and could hear how her blood pressure changed.

"I just," Lucy tried to say as tears filled her eyes and her thoughts went to Aquarius, "I'm just afraid that this happiness will be ripped from me too."

Rogue sat down next to her and Lucy instantly wrapped her arms around his waist. He wrapped his muscular arms around her and whispered to her, "I promise I will never leave."

"What if you don't have a choice?" Lucy cried, "I've lost everyone; my parents, Aquarius, my guild, my team…I've lost everyone. Now Future Rogue basically told me that everything that happened to us in an alternate timeline sucked. "

Rogue's heart ached as he heard the desperation in Lucy's voice. He knew she must still be exhausted and overwhelmed from the events that recently transpired, so he held her closer and said, "I know that there is nothing I can do to bring back everything you have lost. If I could take away your pain then I would do it in a heartbeat."

He heard Lucy sniffle as she nuzzled in closer to his chest and he added, "But what I can promise you is to always be by your side until the day that I die. None of us can control life or death, but I can control my actions and just know that I will always be on your team."

"Thank you," Lucy whispered, "Thank you for everything you have done for me these past few months."

"You are very welcome," Rogue replied, "And just so you know, you will always have a home at Sabertooth—we aren't going anywhere. But if for some reason our guild disbanded, I would still never abandon you. You and I will always be a team now, no matter what."

Lucy just nodded her head into Rogue's chest before there was a knock on the door from Sting, "Hey, can we talk for a second, Rogue?"

Rogue looked down at Lucy, because he wasn't going to let her go if she wasn't ready for him to leave. She gave him a faint smile and said, "I'll be fine. Go talk to Sting, he will need to know what Future You said about Acnologia. I'll be out in a second."

"Ok," Rogue replied before he kissed her head. He still felt guilty leaving her like that, but he could sense that her nerves were starting to calm back down. She was a strong woman and he was glad that she was his.

When Rogue walked into the living room and shut the bedroom door behind him, he narrowed his eyes when he saw Sting's amused face staring back at him.

The young master asked, "So how was your shower?"

"You are a fucking bastard, you know that?" Rogue growled out as he took a seat on the loveseat, "Especially since I've kept my mouth shut while you fucked Yukino's brains out every day—multiple times a day."

"I'm sorry!" Sting laughed as he threw up his hands in a mock surrender.

"No you aren't," Rogue sighed out. He could hear Yukino in the kitchen with Frosch and Lector as she served them some of the take-out Chinese food.

Sting couldn't help it when he admitted, "I just had to see what you'd do about Frosch and oh my god was it hilarious!"

Rogue chucked one of his pillows at his friend and replied darkly, "Payback's a bitch."

"You wouldn't embarrass Yukino like that!" Sting argued.

"You're right I wouldn't and I won't. Being your girlfriend is an embarrassment enough. However, you are the person I'll be paying back," Rogue answered in a grim tone before he changed the subject, "What was it you wanted to talk about?"

Sting looked towards Lucy's door before he replied, "It's not as important as what I thought I just overheard between you two." Rogue looked confused before the young Master stated, "Acnologia…"

The blonde man was normally an arrogant, cocky ass; however, when it came to people he cared about he immediately got serious. Rogue took a deep breath before he began to inform Sting about what Lucy had told him about her time with Future Rogue. He divulged as much as he could—about her still being a member of Fairy Tail, Frosch's death, and all the ways that their lives were different before he finished with, "In his, other Rogue's, timeline Acnologia killed all of the living Celestial Mages because they could stop him. However, it was actually me that killed her in that timeline after Acnologia raped her and then she begged me to kill her."

Sting remained silent but his agitation was clear and concern for the girls. He leaned forward on the couch before he looked at Rogue and said in a serious tone, "Don't you dare blame yourself for what you did in another timeline."

Rogue just huffed before he asked, "How did you know that is what I was thinking?"

Now it was Sting's turn to sigh before he replied, "Because you are my best friend and I know you that well. Look, it sounds like you were pretty fucked up over there—I'm not going to lie. I mean you killed me for fucks sake." There was a brief silence between the two before Sting continued, "But if you had killed the woman you loved and lost Frosch, I could see how that would push you into some pretty deep despair."

When Rogue didn't say anything, Sting looked at his friend and reassured him, "Look man, what happened to them isn't going to happen to us. I am going to make sure of it. Plus, it sounds like everyone in that timeline was caught off guard. We at least know what happened in another time-line and can take extra precautions—even if they don't mean anything. Besides, wouldn't Corvus warn the girls if Acnologia was coming after them?"

"I believe so, but I worry that maybe Acnologia could catch the Spirit off guard the way Future Rogue did," Rogue admitted, "He admitted that some things are more clear than others when it comes to his vision."

Sting leaned back on the couch and put his arms on the back of it as he let out a heavy sigh. Neither men wanted any danger to befall the women that they had fallen in love with; however, they agreed that even if they weren't one hundred percent certain that Acnologia wouldn't come in this time line, they were still going to be prepared.

Rogue looked at his friend and asked, "What do you propose we do next?"

Sting looked toward the kitchen and replied, "We need to tell Yukino today, but I think we should also tell Orga, Minerva, Rufus, and Dobengal tomorrow. Also, I guess this will move up my plans for their Christmas present—it's what I was coming to talk to you about."

Rogue looked confused by the random statement of Sting's before his friend continued, "Even though it was insanely hilarious that Frosch caught you guys about to fuck each other's brains out, this apartment is too small for all of us."

Rogue nodded in agreement before Sting finished, "I think with the news you just shared with me, then it just means my original Christmas gift idea was a brilliant one."

"Do share," Rogue stated in a sarcastic tone.

"I think we should buy a big house and all move in together," Sting stated with a grin.

Rogue looked at his best friend in disbelief, but then thought about Lucy. She really loved being with Yukino and likewise Yukino loved having Lucy. Plus she still worried a lot about them all abandoning her and he wanted to reassure her in every way possible that they would never do that to her. He didn't want to separate them and Sting was right…the six of them all living in this apartment was getting a bit cramped.

Then Rogue asked, "How big a house were you thinking?"

"I was looking at some four bedroom ones," Sting admitted, "One for you and Lucy, one for me and Yukino, and then Lector and Frosch could share—plus an additional guest."

"What guests would want to stay with us?" Rogue chuckled.

Sting shrugged his shoulders before he admitted, "Wendy will probably want to come visit Lucy from time to time. However, I also don't think we have seen the end of Fairy Tail. I think if they know Lucy is in danger—they will all show back up. I just think if Erza or someone shows up, then Lucy is so kind that she would want them to stay there—not permanently though."

Rogue didn't know how to take that statement, but he would agree to whatever Lucy decided before he added, "You've really gotten to know Lucy really well."

Sting just smiled and replied, "She's like the sister I never had—which makes me pretty damn territorial of her. You don't have to worry about if Natsu shows back up."

"Why's that?" Rogue asked curiously.

"You can stay on the high-road; however, if that dumbass fire bastard tries to take her back and starts spouting that nakama this and nakama that bullshit, then I will be the one to kick his ass for hurting my sis," Sting replied in a serious tone.

Rogue just nodded his head in understanding. He hoped that for Lucy's sake that when the day Natsu comes back, if he comes back, that he doesn't act like an idiot and that everything can be resolved peacefully. But the Shadow Dragon Slayer didn't want to think about that right now, so he decided to change the subject with, "I think we should tell the girls this idea about the house, because they will have a big say over it. I don't want to get one that they don't like."

"You're right," Sting laughed before he leaned his head back and groaned, "We are so fucking whipped."

Rogue just smiled in agreement before Lucy came out of the bedroom. Sting looked at Lucy and said, "Hey Blondie, you hungry?"

"I'm starving," Lucy replied before she flopped down next to Rogue.

Sting nodded before he jumped up and said, "I'm going to go help Yukino and bring the food out here. We all have a lot to talk about."

Lucy looked over at Rogue and gave him a small smile before she leaned her head against his shoulder and breathed in his calming scent. She knew that no matter what happened in life now, she would be strong enough to survive it—even if most of the time she felt hopeless. However, having Rogue by her side, smelling him, touching him—it helped her in more ways than she could describe.

It wasn't long before Sting brought out gobs of food for them with Yukino. Lucy was always amazed in the past with how much Natsu could eat, but being on a team with two Dragon Slayers now astounded her even more. However, today she could probably match them with food intake because she was starving. Frosch was so excited that Lucy was safe that he ended up squeezing his way in-between the couple on the love seat so that he could be by both of them. Then Rogue and Sting looked at each other before Rogue nodded that Sting should start the heavy conversation.

Sting cleared his throat and looked at Yukino and Lucy before he began, "So Rogue caught me up on what Future Rogue told Lucy about a lot of things—but what concerns me the most is Acnologia."

Lector had just popped a piece of sweet and sour chicken into his mouth before he asked, "That big dragon from Tartaros?"

Yukino stopped eating her food when Sting looked at Lector and replied, "The same one."

Sting took a deep breath before he looked at Yukino and said, "In the other time line, Acnologia killed all of the living Celestial Mages because they were the only ones that could stop him."

Yukino and Lucy made eye contact with each other before Yukino whispered, "But that doesn't mean it will happen in this timeline."

"No it doesn't," Rogue replied, "But that doesn't mean we shouldn't get prepared."

When the girls didn't respond, Sting added onto Rogue's comment, "I think we need two strategies. First, we research on the side how Celestial Mages could destroy Acnologia. We keep it secret because we don't want to draw unnecessary attention and bring him to us. I will inform key members of our guild and we will keep it strictly between us."

Rogue liked the plan, but it essentially rode on the fact that the girls would agree to it. When the girls both nodded that they understood, along with the Exceeds, Sting continued, "The second strategy is, we should all move in together."

"What?!" Yukino yelled.

"YAY!" Frosch and Lector yelled simultaneously.

"Yukino, Babe, this apartment is too small for all of us and we need to find a place that would be more defendable," Sting admitted with a shrug of his shoulders.

"But we haven't been dating that long!" Yukino argued, "What would people think?"

Sting just shrugged his shoulders before he responded, "Who cares? Besides we are a team."

"Is that all I am to you?" Yukino gawked at him, "Your teammate?"

"No! Of course not!" Sting shot back—a little taken aback, and hurt, by Yukino's aggressiveness towards him.

Then Yukino turned to Lucy and asked, "You have to agree with me, right? Isn't this kind of sudden?"

Lucy looked at Rogue and she knew that he would go with whatever she was comfortable with, so she felt safe with her response to Yukino. She cleared her throat before she replied, "Yukino, honestly…if we weren't mages that didn't live scary and you never really know what is going to happen next lives—then yes moving in together would be too fast."

Everyone remained silent and the two girls looked at each other before Lucy continued, "But we don't live normal lives and I just saw what would happen to Rogue, what he would turn into, if something were to happen to me the way it did in that timeline. Plus, I've lost so much this year—it'd be really nice to have a consistent family and living arrangements."

"Lucy," Yukino whispered, "I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking about it from your perspective."

Lucy smiled before she pointed at the Two Dragon Slayers and said, "They just want to keep us safe and despite how Sting comes across, he is madly in love with you. The thought of Acnologia coming for us, especially you, probably terrifies him."

Yukino then turned to Sting who had a pouty look on his face before she asked, "Is that true?"

"Well yeah…"Sting replied in a lowered tone, because he hated how the girls were talking about him like he wasn't sitting there. It embarrassed him.

"I'm sorry for getting upset, of course I will move in with you Sting Eucliffe," Yukino whispered to him as she leaned her head against his shoulders, "I mean we do practically live together now anyways—I guess it wouldn't' be that big of a deal if we got a bigger place so that we are all more comfortable."

The blonde dragon slayer gave his girlfriend a wink before he joked, "I will leave the house making decisions up to you girls—just make sure to get sound proof walls."

Both girls gasped, but then Rogue added in agreement, "Please."

Lucy and Yukino blushed but agreed to the terms and Lucy figured that if they couldn't find one like that, then they could easily find some land a build a house to their standards. So the team was in agreement that before the end of the year, they would all move into a house together and they would prepare for any threat that Acnologia might come at them with in the future.

* * *

It was already later in the evening and the team was still wiped from the previous night's adventures. Rogue felt content as Lucy leaned up against him on the loveseat. Sting and Yukino had decided to walk Frosch and Lector back to the guild so that they could go swimming. The Shadow Dragon Slayer felt relieved that both girls understood the fear that both he and Sting had about losing them.

However, Rogue's thoughts were broken when Lucy whispered to him, "Rogue, I'm glad I'm here with you."

Rogue couldn't help but smile when he replied, "As am I."

Lucy turned a little so that she could look up at his face and asked, "But do you think you only like me because of the soul mates thing?"

"What?" Rogue asked and he couldn't help but laugh and be a little shocked at the same time.

"I dunno," Lucy replied in embarrassment, "Like, what if you don't want to be with me but the universe is making us."

"Is that how you feel about it?" Rogue asked with an arch to his brow.

"Well no," Lucy admitted quietly.

"Then why would you think I felt that way?" Rogue asked in an amused voice.

"I don't know!" Lucy said as she gave him a playful push.

Then in a more serious tone Rogue admitted, "I told you after we found Corvus that soulmates be damned. Even if you weren't my soulmate, you are who I'd chose to be with. Yes, it's not like we were best friends or anything when you were in Fairy Tail and I was here. However, I'd be a liar if I said that I never noticed you."

"Oh really?" Lucy asked with a smile, "So you may have thought about me before I came here?"

Rogue pulled Lucy closer to him before he replied, "Of course. Any man with two eyes could see how unbelievably sexy you are, but even then it was more than that. Your kind heart shone out to me a like a beacon in my shadows. Plus, Yukino talked about you all the time so to me it felt like I knew you well even before you joined. You were smart, funny, loyal, and kind."

Lucy began to blush violently then asked, "You really thought all that?"

Rogue nodded his head and added, "Of course, I never would have ever wanted you to lose one of your spirits, but I am thankful every day that you came into my life. Even when we were just friends when you first joined. I valued your friendship and you."

Lucy leaned up and pressed her lips gently to his at first, but then when his hands ran up the sides of her hips the intensity of the kiss grew. She smelled like sweetest fruit in all of his desires and he'd be damned if he let Acnologia or even Natsu take her away from him someday. He had to get stronger to protect his new family because that is what she was to him now. He, Frosch, and Lucy were family.

When she pulled away from him, she admitted, "Rogue, I have been thinking about what Sting said earlier about having a plan to defeat Acnologia if he shows up."

Rogue ran his hands through Lucy's soft blonde hair before he asked, "What's that?"

"First, I think you should know that I think he will come for us," Lucy replied bluntly.

Rogue could tell that the conversation switched from playful to serious fast before he inquired, "What makes you think that?"

Lucy leaned back a little so that she could look at him better before she admitted, "Yukino and I are already the two strongest Celestial Mages and we plan on getting as many keys as we can." When Rogue nodded his head in understanding before she continued, "I think it is a double sided sword effect, we have to get as many keys to defeat him—plus he will come for us because we have so many and we will be so powerful."

"That makes sense, but why are you so certain that in this timeline Celestial Mages are the key to defeating him?" Rogue asked because he wanted to be certain that he could protect Lucy in any way that he could.

"My Mama used to tell me that Celestial Mages almost wielded fate itself, because we had the power of the stars in our hands," Lucy whispered at a distant memory of her mother, "It's just something she used to say—I don't know if it is true or not, but I think about how I was the only one who survived the attack from Mard Geer and it was me that saved everyone. It's just something I have been thinking about since Sting said that about the plan we should come up with in case he does come."

Rogue just nodded in agreement, because if there was one thing he noticed about both Lucy and Yukino was that their hunches were often pretty accurate. Then he turned to her and said, "I think it would be a good idea if we could find some missions or go to some places and buy as many books on Celestial Magic as we can. We can easily play it off as adding to our library. I have absolute faith in your theory and I want to start making preparations as soon as possible."

Lucy gave her boyfriend a sweet smile before she kissed him on the cheek.

A few minutes later, Rogue excused himself to use the restroom. After he left the room, Lucy's mind began to reel at everything the team had discussed and her own worries. Then she wondered what her old team would do if they knew that Acnologia might one day come after her. At the thought of them, Lucy looked down at her glove covered hand. She took a deep breath before she slowly began to pull the fabric back and scowled when she saw that the pink mark was still there.


	11. Chapter 11

**I apologize for any typos, as you are probably aware...I’ve updated A LOT today and have been struggling with an illness.**

**Please enjoy and remember to comment!**

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**December**

Lucy and Yukino were in the country side following up on the construction of their house. Both girls were in complete awe and in excitement as they watched the plumbers move in the fancy tubs and showers for the two separate master bathrooms. Their house was quite expensive to build, so much so that Fairy Tail Lucy would have died on the spot because there was no way in a million years that she would have been able to afford it. However, Sabertooth was a guild of awesome jobs and luxury. Even when Fairy Tail was at its peak, they didn’t get the kind of job offers the Sabertooth mages got. For the first time since running away from home, money was no longer an option for her. Which was good because they ended up having to build a house, instead of buying one already on the market, because apparently sound proof walls weren’t really a common feature in most houses. Since that was the only request from both Sting and Rogue, the girls knew they had to accommodate for their boyfriends’ sakes.

Lucy smiled as they watched the progress being done and the first snow of the year began to fall. In a matter of weeks, she would be in her new home with her new family. She let out a relieved sigh because so much had happened in the past month. Lucy and Yukino had contracted several new keys; Andromeda; Camelopardalis; Canis Major (much to Plue’s delight); Hydra; and Hydrus. They also found five ancient texts on the missions that would hopefully lead them to a spell that would defeat Acnologia should he show. Rufus was still deciphering most of them, but they were able to find so many new keys thanks to the texts. Things were improving and they were getting stronger.

 As they made their way back to the apartment, Yukino asked, “So Lucy, what did you get Rogue for Christmas?”

Lucy blushed a little, because she couldn’t possibly tell Yukino about the new Maid outfit she had gotten that she wanted to give Rogue on Christmas night. He hadn’t scheduled her Slave Day yet, but she wanted him to know that a bet was a bet and she was still going to follow through with it. However, she wasn’t opposed to sharing her other gift idea.

“I got us a week’s vacation for anytime he wants at this beautiful resort north of the Waas Forest. He’s done so much that I hope soon we can get away and relax, just the two of us,” Lucy beamed at her friend before she asked, “What about you and Sting?”

“Oh that’s such a good idea!” Yukino stated, “I asked Sting what he wanted and all he said was sex…but I can’t think of what else to get him.”

Lucy rolled her eyes, because Sting was solely thinking about sex and only sex. The amount of times Lucy had now walked in on Sting and Yukino was getting to be a bit much. So Lucy smirked and stated, “Well when I was looking at vacation spots, there were some at Akane too. You and Sting both love the beach.”

“That’s very true,” Yukino smiled, “But if I bring it up, he will want to go with you guys and that would defeat your purpose.”

The two girls began to laugh and Lucy nodded her head in agreement as they made their way to the guild to see their horny Dragon Slayers.

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**Christmas Day**

Lucy squealed in excitement as she drank her Grinch Cocktail that Orga had made for her as one of her favorite songs began to play…

_Rockin' around the Christmas tree_

_At the Christmas party hop_

_Mistletoe hung where you can see_

_Every couple tries to stop_

The guild was bustling in excitement as the gift exchange began. This morning had been fun at their apartment, everyone had pitched in to make breakfast and then loaded up everyone’s presents to take to the guild. They felt like a genuine family. She smiled in happiness as she watched everyone exchange presents because she was efficient this morning and had already given Orga, Lector, Dobegnal, Minerva, Yukino, Sting, and Frosh their presents. Now it was time to find her sexy boyfriend and get him under the mistletoe.

She finally spotted him by Sting and she watched from a distance as Sting handed Rogue a box. She couldn’t hide her amused smile at his skepticism of Sting’s gift and then when he removed the lid, his expression only looked more exasperated as Rogue held up a strands of flavored condoms.

She rolled her eyes at Sting’s antics before she ran up and planted a kiss on Rogue’s cheek quickly and asked, “Having fun?”

“I am!” Sting replied.

Rogue just let out a sigh before he looked into his loving girlfriend’s eyes and smiled, “I’m doing better now.”

She grinned back at him as she grabbed his hand and dragged him under the mistletoe. He gave her an amused look at her child-like antics before he pointed out, “You didn’t have to pull me under the mistletoe for a kiss.”

“I know!” Lucy beamed at him as she handed him the envelope.

He smiled curiously and accepted the gift as she took another sip of her drink that she had surprisingly not spilled with her giddiness. She could feel herself holding her breath for too long as Rogue opened her resort gift, the Maid outfit was tucked in a box under her bed that she’d give him later that night. His eyes widened before a genuine smile spread across his face and he stated, “Wow, this is…this is…”

Then he didn’t even finish what he was saying before his lips crashed down onto hers. She hummed in delight as he pulled her lithe body close to his and continued to physically thank her before he pulled away and added, “This is really amazing. I can’t wait to get away, just the two of us.”

“Same,” she hummed in response before she gave him a gentle kiss on his lips again. Today they had both decided that they would not try to think about the various grim futures that could happen. Today was a day to celebrate and be with each other and their friends. After she pulled away from their kiss, she explained, “It is good for anytime this next year. You get to pick when.”

He got a devilish smirk on his face before he whispered, “Maybe for our honeymoon?”

She was fairly certain her heart had stopped and everything else around them seemed to fade away as he pulled out a little block box and opened it to reveal a black diamond halo engagement ring before he asked, “Lucy Heartfilia, will you not just be my soulmate—but my wife?”

Her mouth fell open and before she could respond, which was good because at the moment she couldn’t, when he added, “I wanted to propose to you at the place I fell in love with you; the place where you became a member of this family; and a place surrounded by people who love you. Whether in this life or the next, I want to spend it with you.”

Tears were now streaming down her face as she nodded, “Yes, Rogue…yes.”

The most genuine smile spread across his face before he slipped the ring on her finger and pulled her into a passionate kiss—which made the entire Guild burst out in celebration for the happy couple.

The smile never left her face the whole day, especially when Frosch begged to be the flower Exceed in the wedding. She couldn’t stop staring at it and even her spirits were coming out to congratulate them. Lucy had found out that Rogue had actually asked Loke first for his blessing which made everything even better. Everything was pretty close to perfect. She was shocked as hell because they hadn’t been dating that long, but she supposed people did dumber stuff in the world than get engaged. One thing she learned from Future Rogue was that tomorrow is never promised, so she is going to live every day like it’s her last.

After everyone congratulated them, the Christmas feast was about to begin with Rufus came up to the happy couple and motioned for Sting and Yukino to come over. The elegant mage smirked before he congratulated the couple, “Lucy, Rogue, I am beyond happy for you both. I don’t think there are two people more deserving than you both to find someone to cherish for the rest of your lives.”

“Hey! What about us?” Sting laughed as he nudged Rufus.

Rufus readjusted his Christmas themed hat before he sighed, “And Yukino, God Bless your soul for loving Sting.”

“Hey!” Sting yelled only slightly offended because he knew it was true.

Then Rufus cleared his throat before he added, “I actually had not given my present to the girls yet and I think everyone should have a seat.”

The four mages did as they were instructed and Lucy wasn’t sure how anything could top Rogue’s present, but then Rufus began, “As you know I have been translating the old books we have found over Celestial Mages. Well I have two things to give; the first being—I have found the location of Draco’s key.”

Lucy’s and Yukino’s eyes widened in amazement before Yukino asked, “Are you serious?!”

Rufus nodded his head before Sting asked, “Draco, like in the Dragon?”

Lucy and Yukino both nodded their heads before Yukino whispered, “If we can get Draco, he could easily overpower Acnologia!”

Everyone looked at each other with renewed hope before Rufus grinned, “I thought you might like that; however, his location will not become visible until New Year’s Day. It is hidden on an island that only reveals itself on the first day of the New Year.”

“I guess we know what our New Year’s plans are,” Rogue smiled at Lucy.

She felt beyond excited before Rufus added, “That’s not all—Miss Lucy…I’ve discovered something that would be very important for you.”

“What’s that?” she asked with a smile.

Rufus smiled at her warmly before he said in a calm voice, “Keys that were once broken can be remade.”

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**Please Comment, Kudos, and Review! :D**

Song choice because it fits the jovial theme: _Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree_ by Brenda Lee

 


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